Spare pensioner, collect over-credited sum from bank officials: Karnataka HC

The high court has directed Canara Bank to immediately unblock the account of a family pensioner and restore the payment of family pension.

It observed that the excess amount of Rs 2.34 lakh credited to her account must be recovered from the erring officers.

The petitioner’s account has been blocked since November 2016 in order to recover the excess amount.

“We are in a digital age; excess payment is immediately reflected on the screens of computers through which the amounts are disbursed. It is only to be noticed by the person operating the computer or the person who takes the decision on transferring the monthly pension.

"In such a case, neither the hardware nor the software would be responsible, but it is the heartware. By heartware, I mean the person who handles the account and transfers the amount through the computer. It is that heartware that has to detect the problem and that something is amiss,” Justice M Nagaprasanna observed while allowing the petition.

Petitioner Nalini Devi’s husband was working as a Second Division Assistant in the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, CAR (Central), Bengaluru. The petitioner had been getting a family pension after her husband’s death in 2004. However, in November 2016, the bank staff said that she could not operate the account as there was some excess payment made to the family pension.

The petitioner made a representation immediately to unblock the account, which would enable her to draw family pension.

“If the trail of representations is noticed, it would demonstrate a callous, lackadaisical, and irresponsible attitude of the officers of the bank and the 5th respondent (Joint Director, Pension Payment Treasury) or the office of the Accountant General who had processed the papers of the petitioner for family pension.

“The petitioner, wife of the employee, who died in harness, and a senior citizen has been made to run from pillar to post, mentally harassed, first to set her pension right and then asking for unblocking of the account,” the court said.

The court also noted that the officers who display such remissness should not be tolerated and the option of initiating disciplinary proceedings against those officers for imposing punishment for the act of dereliction of duty should be explored, so that taxpayer’s money is not put in jeopardy.