1. By way of this petition, the petitioner has prayed to issue the directions to the respondent to make the payment of interest on the delayed payment of retiral dues of the petitioner for more than 13 years as per the statement of calculation at Annexure-I collectively.
2. The case of the petitioner is that the petitioner was serving with the respondent no. 2 as a Executive Engineer Civil till 05.03.1992 and during his tenure a false complaint under provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act has been filed on 29.11.2011 and accordingly he was suspended from service on 04.03.1992. In the said case the petitioner was acquitted by the order dated 12.02.1997 of learned Sessions Court, Jamnagar. Against this judgment, the respondent has filed a criminal appeal which was dismissed. Accordingly, petitioner has approached the respondent to reinstate his service but the respondent did not reinstate the petitioner. Petitioner has also prayed for retiral dues and benefits and to consider his period of suspension as "on duty" but the respondent failed to do so. Hence, the present petition.
3. Heard the learned counsels for the parties and considered the material placed on record. The Sessions Court had acquitted the petitioner from corruption charges. Against that, the State had preferred a criminal appeal in this court that was dismissed vide order dated 24.07.2009 and the order of acquittal passed by learned Sessions Court was confirmed. But, before that, the petitioner had retired due to age of retirement on 31.03.1997. Therefore, the Govt. by order dated 06.04.2010 treated the suspension period of the petitioner from 06.03.1992 to 31.03.1997 as "on duty". The suspension period is regularised only after the order of this Court passed in criminal appeal. Therefore, amount dues of the petitioner were not paid. The interest claimed by the petitioner from the date of his suspension period was rejected as the period of his suspension was not considered "on duty" and he was not regularised. Accordingly, I find that the decision taken by the respondent authority is just and proper.
4. Under the circumstances, no case is made out. Petition being devoid of any merits, stands dismissed.
(K.S.
Jhaveri, J.) Amar Top