In Brief
An employee of Indian Overseas Bank applied for Voluntary Retirement under a scheme requiring irrevocable exercise of the option. Despite withdrawing before acceptance was communicated, the High Court ordered his reinstatement with full benefits. The Supreme Court held that the VRS scheme's express terms made the option irrevocable once exercised. Invoking Article 142, the Court found this a fit case for equitable intervention: the respondent's service was declared continuous till superannuation, but he was denied backwages from 2001–2014 and granted only 50% for 2014–2017, with VRS benefits to be withdrawn by the Bank.
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