Supreme Court Questions P&H High Court Order Quashing Chargesheet Over Forgery Allegations In 2002 Haryana Civil Service Recruitment

While dealing with a cheating and forgery case against 8 Haryana Civil Service officers over their recruitment in 2002, the Supreme Court deprecated the Punjab and Haryana High Court's order quashing the chargesheet against the accused.

The Court questioned the High Court's taking over of the role of the investigating agencies insofar as it examined the answer sheets to test the veracity of an affidavit placed before it by the State Addl. Advocate General. It further noted that the High Court held onto the answer sheets for years, thereby precluding completion of investigation.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, after hearing Senior Advocate R Basant (for petitioner) and Senior Advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Ranjith Kumar and Gurminder Singh (for respondents), called for the assistance of the Haryana Advocate General on the next date as well as appearance of the Investigating Officer (alongwith all the material).

Notably, at one point during the hearing, the bench orally expressed that if upon examination of the material, it finds allegations of cheating, forgery, overwriting, double-writing, etc. to be correct, it would set aside the recruitment. Alternatively, it offered to set aside the High Court order and leave things upon conclusion of the investigation.

"We can call for the copies here also. We can call the IO, the Addl. AG, or the Adv General of Haryana alongwith the records. If something comes to our knowledge and we can see it in black and white, we will not be shy of taking apt. steps and passing apt. orders. If we call everything here and we examine, and we find that there is something seriously wrong in the entire selection process and the manipulations, the overwriting, the cuttings, double handwritings, different handwritings in one answer sheet - we will cancel the entire selection.

Otherwise, you have your battles pending before the High Court, we can send back these matters, set aside the order of the High Court, let the investigation continue. The govt has not taken any action against you so far. The selections have not been touched at all. Everyone is working. But if we ultimately decide, your service goes. If we find there is total manipulation and forgery, we will set aside everything", Justice Nath conveyed to the respondents.

Briefly put, the 8 officers were among 64 candidates selected by the Haryana Public Service Commission in September 2002 for posts in the HCS and allied services. Alleging irregularities in the recruitment process, the present petitioner and then MLA, Karan Singh Dalal, had filed a writ petition before the High Court.

In 2005, an FIR was registered at the behest of a person who applied in the recruitment process for assistant professors, but was not selected. This FIR did not name the 8 officers.

In 2023, the police filed a chargesheet including the names of the 8 officers. In February this year, the High Court quashed the chargesheet against the 8 officers, noting that their names were not part of the 2005 FIR.

During yesterday's hearing, Sr Adv Ranjit Kumar submitted that the issue qua the 8 officers cropped up in 2022-23 when they were sought to be promoted from the State service to IAS. He also informed that as on date, the officers have been provisionally promoted, but they cannot take benefit thereof, as the Supreme Court has stayed the High Court judgment quashing the chargesheet against them. 

Hearing the submissions, Justice Nath asked, "Why the High Court has not been able to decide these matters which have been pending for last 15 years?" The judge also questioned why the entire exam was not cancelled by the State, or a relevant order passed by the High Court, when the Addl. Advocate General's affidavit contained specific findings of manipulations.

"It will take us 3 minutes to reverse this order. This order is absurd. Non-naming of an accused in a fraud FIR...copies have not been examined...the High Court is holding on to the copies, how the investigation will be completed? 18 years have been spent by the HC! For that reason, investigation should be quashed? Sorry, no. Can't be. It could have been deferred, or whatever, but not quashed! Once it is quashed, under what provision could IO carry on again? Qua the petitioners, how will it be revived?" exclaimed Justice Mehta.

In response to a contention by Rohatgi that the High Court itself examined the answer sheets to test the veracity of the Addl. Adv General's affidavit the judge remarked, "Was the High Court supposed to delve with the investigation/jurisdiction of the IO?" Why this exercise by the High Court when IO was in seisin of the matter? Is this the job of the High Court to examine whether this is a cutting in the copy? The High Court virtually took over the investigation! This is absolutely not in the domain of the High Court! Total ignorance..."

Justice Mehta also commented that the liberty given by the High Court to the State to investigate the matter at an apt. stage "if it desires" was "an eye wash on the face of it". "The order is absolutely bad on the face of it", he said.

Interestingly, when Basant pointed out that the State has not filed an appeal against the High Court order, and alleged that the State is hand-in-glove with the respondent-officers, Justice Nath also remarked that the State has been hand-in-glove with both sides. "State has been hand-in-glove with you also and them also...State has been playing its game through and through", the judge commented.

The matter will be heard next on Tuesday.

Case Title: Karan Singh Dalal v. State of Haryana and Ors., SLP (Crl) No.5598-5605/2026