The law and parliamentary affairs secretary has been found to have drawn Rs1.6 million in excess of his pension entitlement since he retired as Punjab Assembly secretary in 2004, The Express Tribune has learnt.
Syed Abul Hassan Najmee retired as assembly secretary in January 2004 on attaining the age of superannuation. Since October 2009, he has been working as law secretary on contract.
He was informed about the excess payment when he requested the Treasury Office to recalculate the increase in pension admissible from the first month of the current financial year, a Treasury Official told The Express Tribune on condition of anonymity.
Najmee, a civil judge posted to the Law and Parliamentary Affairs Department, had joined Punjab Assembly in 1993.
He was re-employed on contract in relaxation of the Re-Employment Policy 2003 and the Contract Appointment Policy 2004. In October 2011, the government extended his contract for another two years until October 18, 2013.
In October 2013, he was given a two-year extension in service for the third time.
On August 11, the Treasury Office wrote to Najmee raising two objections.
“The Punjab Assembly secretariat does not fall within the civil service. Residence orderly allowance or special additional pension equal to residence orderly allowance is not admissible to you… amount so drawn is recoverable,” the letter reads.
The office also said pension for employment against a contract was not entitled to a raise.
Najmee wrote to the Treasury Office on August 21 saying that the office was not competent to raise objections. He said the post of assembly secretary had been re-designated as adviser in April 1999.
“On my retirement, the orderly allowance was made part of pension as admissible,” he said in the letter.
The official said after his retirement in January 2004, Najmee had been getting an orderly allowance of Rs7,000 a month which was not admissible to him according to the Civil Servant Act 1974.
The allowance was only admissible to a secretary designated under the Civil Servant Act 1974, he said.
In case of re-employment of a retired official, a raise in pension is not admissible during the period of re-employment, the official said.
On August 28, the Treasury Office wrote another letter asking Najmee to explain seven other legal points, the official said.
An official in the Accountant General’s Office said Najmee had unlawfully received Rs1.6 million as orderly and utility allowances.
“His pension has been stopped. The authority will ask him to re-pay the excess payment… otherwise it will be detected from his pension each month.”
He said Najmee was more than 70 years of age. He said the Re-employment Policy 2003 and Contract Appointment Policy 2004 maintained that no retired official above 63 could be hired on a contract for a public job.
“I have explained my position to the Treasury Office. I have also told them I would return the money if I had drawn an excess amount,” Najmee told The Express Tribune.
“I am receiving all the financial benefits in line with the settled terms and conditions.”
Published in The Express Tribune, September 5th, 2014.
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