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PTET’s Discriminatory Pension Policy: Supreme Court Orders Being Defied, Pensioners Cheated (By a Concerned PTCL Pensioner) ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI: Thousands of retired employees of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) who served decades in the erstwhile T&T Department are facing blatant discrimination in the disbursement of their hard-earned government pensions, despite clear and repeated judgments of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. In a landmark ruling on February 15, 2018, the Supreme Court granted government pension benefits, including regular increases, to 342 normally retired PTCL pensioners who had attained the age of 60. These pensioners belonged to various grades — from Grade 1 to Grade 15 and above. Some had entered service through the Federal Public Service Commission examination while others were recruited through different channels that existed at the time of transfer from the T&T Department. Importantly, the court made no distinction based on grade or recruitment method. Following the same spirit, the Supreme Court in its judgment dated July 10, 2025, once again upheld and expanded these protections. The apex court clearly defined the rights of employees transferred from T&T to the Corporation and later to PTCL, declaring that their pensionary benefits are dynamic and must be treated at par with civil servants. The court rejected narrow interpretations that tried to label most of these employees as “workmen” to deny them rightful benefits. Shockingly, the Pakistan Telecommunication Employees Trust (PTET) and GMPTE have chosen to implement these judgments selectively. After the 2018 verdict, PTET/GMPTE itself issued letters to all 342 pensioners across all grades, clearly mentioning the amount of government pension and arrears payable, without raising any objection about their status. Now, after the 2025 judgment, the same authorities have adopted a completely contradictory stand. They are limiting government pensions only to a small group who joined in Grade 17 after passing the FPSC exam before January 1, 1991. All other retired employees are being branded as “workmen” and denied their due rights. Legal experts and affected pensioners term this approach as mala fide, arbitrary, and against the letter and spirit of the Supreme Court’s directives. There is no law or previous court ruling that restricts civil servant status or pension protection only to pre-1991 Grade-17 inductees. The Supreme Court has already settled the distinction between civil servants and workmen in these cases. By filing multiple review petitions, PTET appears determined to delay and dilute the implementation of the apex court’s orders. This bureaucratic resistance is causing immense financial and mental hardship to elderly pensioners who spent their prime years serving the nation’s telecommunication infrastructure. The Constitution of Pakistan guarantees equality before the law and protection of vested rights such as pension. Pension is not a favour; it is a right earned after decades of service. PTET must immediately implement both the 2018 and 2025 judgments in their true spirit and extend government pension benefits to all eligible normally retired PTCL pensioners without any discrimination based on grade or date of recruitment. The nation expects the authorities concerned and the honourable Supreme Court to ensure that its verdicts are not reduced to mere paper and that retired employees receive justice before it is too late. [Tariq] Date 10-5–2026