Court No. - 36
Case :- WRIT - A No. - 7184 of 2021 Petitioner :- Jeet Pal Singh Respondent :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Petitioner :- Rajesh Singh Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Mahesh Chandra Tripathi,J.
Heard Shri Rajesh Singh, learned counsel for the petitioner and Shri Devesh Vikram, learned Standing Counsel for the State- respondents.
The petitioner is before this Court with following main reliefs:-
"a) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari, quashing the impugned order dated 5.2.2021 passed by the respondent No. 2-Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad, enclosed as Annexure No. 1 to the writ petition.
b) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to pay the suspension allowances with all consequential benefits to the petitioner during the suspension period."
The petitioner, who is Head Constable and posted Police Line, Ghaziabad, was placed under suspension by order dated 1.11.2019 on the ground that one accused namely Firoz @ Raju had absconded from the police custody of petitioner during medical test at MMG Hospital, Ghaziabad. Considering the facts and circumstances, the respondent No. 2 by order dated 13.02.2020 has reinstated the petitioner with immediate effect without interfering in the ongoing preliminary/departmental inquiry with further rider that arrears of pay and allowances for the period of suspension shall be considered lateron. Eventually, the Inquiry Officer has submitted his report before the Senior Superintendent of Police, District Ghaziabad-respondent, pursuant to which a show cause notice was issued to the petitioner on 13.02.2020, which was duly replied by him on 07.03.2020. Consequently, the respondent no.2 has passed a punishment order dated 05.08.2020 according censure entry to the petitioner.
Aggrieved with the said order, appeal was preferred by the petitioner before the Inspector General of Police, Meerut Region, Meerut, which was allowed by order dated 05.11.2020 and consequently the impugned order dated 05.08.2020 was set aside with an observation that the punishment according censure entry is not permissible as per prevailing regulations. Thereafter, the respondent No. 2 issued a show cause notice dated 13.1.2021 regarding salary and allowance for the period of suspension. The petitioner has submitted his reply on 1.2.2021. Finally, the respondent no.2 by impugned order dated 05.02.2021 has held that as the petitioner was accorded censure entry, for the period of suspension, he is not entitle for regular salary and allowances.
Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the appellate authority by an order dated 5.11.2020 has clearly proceeded to observe that the punishment of censure entry was not in accordance with the regulation and as such, the order dated 5.8.2020 passed by the respondent No. 2-Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad was held to be unsustainable and accordingly set aside. At no point of time, the legality of the order dated 05.11.2020 has ever been challenged before any court of law and consequently the same has attained finality, as such the order impugned holding the petitioner guilty of censure entry and curtailing his rights of regular pay and allowances cannot sustain in the eyes of law.
Learned Standing Counsel has not disputed the legal and factual aspect of the matter.
Once the order passed by the Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad inflicting punishment of censure entry was set aside by the appellate authority i.e. Inspector General of Police, Meerut Region, Meerut with the direction to extinct the censure entry accorded to the petitioner from his service book, then there is no impediment to accord all consequential benefits to the petitioner.
In the facts and circumstances of the case, this Court is of the considered opinion that the order impugned retrenching the pay and allowances for the period of suspension to the petitioner is unsustainable and the same is set aside.
The matter is remanded back to the respondent No. 2-Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad to pass a fresh order in accordance with law, keeping in mind the observations made by this Court, within two months from the date of production of a copy of this order.
The writ petition is allowed.
The party shall file computer generated copy of such order downloaded from the official website of High Court Allahabad, self attested by the petitioner alongwith a self attested identity proof of the said person (preferably Aadhar Card) mentioning the mobile number to which the said Aadhar Card is linked.
The concerned Authority/Official shall verify the authenticity of such computerized copy of the order from the official website of High Court Allahabad and shall make a declaration of such verification in writing.
Order Date :- 28.7.2021 Jaswant