Telangana High Court Directs Implementation of Old Pension Scheme Benefits to Justice G. Sri Devi Within 8 Weeks

The Telangana High Court has directed authorities to expeditiously implement pensionary benefits under the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for former judge Justice G. Sri Devi, setting an outer time limit of eight weeks for compliance.

A Division Bench comprising Justice P. Sam Koshy and Justice Narsing Rao Nandikonda passed the order while disposing of a writ petition filed by the retired judge.

The Court recorded that the authorities had already granted approval and sanction for the petitioner’s entitlement under the Old Pension Scheme, including calculation of pension and arrears from the date of her superannuation. Based on submissions made by the Additional Solicitor General and the material placed on record, the Bench observed that implementation was only a matter of time and should be completed on priority.

Justice Sri Devi had approached the Court seeking a direction to grant her revised pension under OPS instead of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS)/New Pension Scheme (NPS), under which she was inadvertently placed after joining the Telangana High Court.

As per the record, she began her career as a judicial officer in Uttar Pradesh and was elevated as a judge of the Allahabad High Court on November 22, 2018. She was later transferred to the Telangana High Court in May 2019 and retired on October 9, 2022, upon attaining superannuation.

The Bench noted that since she retired from the Telangana High Court, the State of Telangana was responsible for her retiral benefits. It further acknowledged that she had always been entitled to OPS based on the option exercised during her service in Uttar Pradesh, but was mistakenly brought under CPS after her transfer.

Due to this error, she was receiving a significantly reduced pension of around ₹17,500 per month instead of her rightful entitlement of approximately ₹1,12,500 under OPS.

During proceedings, both the State government and the office of the Accountant General examined the claim and confirmed her entitlement to OPS. The Court also took note of compliance steps: the petitioner had refunded the amount received under CPS, and the funds held with HDFC Bank were returned to the State treasury to facilitate processing under OPS.

Recording these developments, the Court disposed of the petition with an expectation that the sanctioned pension, along with arrears, would be implemented as expeditiously as possible, preferably within eight weeks.

Case Reference : W.P. No. 39063 of 2025, Justice G. Sri Devi vs Union of India and Others