D.D.Tewari (D) Thr. Lrs vs Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam ...

The Supreme Court held that pension and gratuity are valuable rights of employees, and any undue delay in their payment warrants the award of interest at the current market rate, as established in State of Kerala & Ors. Vs. M. Padmanabhan Nair. The Court found that the High Court erred in not awarding interest on the delayed payment of the appellant's retiral benefits, thus allowing the appeal and directing the respondents to pay the withheld gratuity with interest. The judgment reinforces the principle that delays in payment of retiral benefits must be compensated with interest.