Ljubljana, 18 March (STA) - The Constitutional Court has annulled several provisions of the 2012 act on the balancing of public finances which cut the pensions of an estimated 26,000 retirees who get their pensions, partially or in whole, financed from the budget.

The court, acting on a petition submitted by the Human Rights Ombudsman, said Monday the cut was discriminatory in not treating all affected groups equally.

The Pension and Disability Insurance Institute was ordered to issue new decisions on the pensions of those affected by the cuts, restoring their right retroactively.

The cuts affected some 8,000 pensioners who worked in other countries of the former Yugoslavia before the country's break up, as well as thousands of WWII veterans, internees, refugees and Yugoslav army soldiers.

Parliament amended the act on the balancing of public finances in mid-December to restore the rights of those who worked in Yugoslavia, but it left all other groups in the cold.

The original cut was a part of efforts to relieve the ZPIZ of liabilities that do not stem from contributions.