Does Death by Poisoning Qualify for Extraordinary Pension? Allahabad High Court Says No in Sub-Inspector Case

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In a recent ruling, the Allahabad High Court rejected an appeal seeking extraordinary pension for the death of Sub-Inspector Ashok Kumar Tyagi, who died of poisoning while on duty in 2001. The Division Bench of Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Jaspreet Singh held that Tyagi's death did not qualify for extraordinary pension under the Uttar Pradesh Police (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1961, as the cause of death was unrelated to hazardous duties.

The widow of the deceased, Smt. Poonam Tyagi, had argued that her husband’s death occurred while performing official duties, entitling her to extraordinary pension. However, the court applied the legal principle of ejusdem generis—which requires that general terms in a legal text be interpreted in light of specific instances mentioned before them. The court noted that the Rules apply to police officers dying in perilous situations such as combat or criminal confrontation, not merely because an officer dies while on duty.

In this case, two viscera reports revealed the presence of Aluminum Phosphide and Ethyl Alcohol in Tyagi’s system, but no evidence linked the poisoning to any dangerous task related to his duties. The court emphasized that there was no causal connection between Tyagi's death and the type of hazardous work contemplated by the Rules. As a result, the appeal was dismissed.

This decision reaffirms that extraordinary pension under the Uttar Pradesh Police (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1961, is strictly reserved for officers who die while performing dangerous and life-threatening tasks, and not for deaths that occur due to unrelated incidents while on duty.