Depriving Candidate Public Employment Over FIR 'Dispelled' By Negative Final Report Violates Article 14: Rajasthan High Court

Rajasthan High Court held that depriving a candidate of public employment merely due to registration of FIR that resulted in negative report, was not only arbitrary but also punished a candidate for no fault of his. The bench of Justice Arun Monga observed that such a proposition placed a citizen's career at the mercy of someone who chose to file a false complaint. “The mere registration of an FIR is not proof of involvement; it is, at best, an allegation, and an allegation that has been negatived on investigation carries no legal consequence against the person so accused. To hold otherwise would mean that any candidate could be deprived of public employment simply because a disgruntled relative or adversary chose to lodge a false complaint, a proposition that would place a citizen's career at the mercy of the malice of others and reward the very act of false implication.”For context, the petitioner had applied for the post of Physical Training Instructor (PTI), in which he was declared successful. Before his joining, an FIR was registered against him alleging rape. Subsequently, he was not permitted to join the services and no formal reason was communicated to him. Eventually in the FIR, a negative final report was filed by the police. Hence, the present petition was filed. The counsel appearing for the State submitted that at the relevant time, the petitioner was involved in offences against the state, hence, he was not eligible to be considered for appointment on the post. After hearing the contentions, the Court held that the petitioner could not be made subject to the consequences for the fault of a third party of registering a false case against him, by withholding or deferring his candidature. “To penalise a candidate for the wrongful act of another, in respect of allegations that the investigation itself has found to be false and unsubstantiated, apart from amounting to punish him for no fault of his own, would be a course which offends the basic notion of fairness implicit in Article 14… Once the cloud of the FIR stood completely dispelled by the negative final report, the very substratum for keeping the petitioner's case pending or for denying him the benefit of selection disappeared…”The Court opined that where surrounding circumstances as well as the investigating agency revealed that the candidate was a victim of false implication, and the antecedents disclosed no blemishes in his character, to treat such candidate ineligible would be to elevate mere FIR to disqualification. Accordingly, the petition was allowed, and the State was directed to consider the candidature of the petitioner. Title: Lal Chand v State of Rajasthan & Ors. Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (Raj) 229Click Here To Read/Download Order

Depriving Candidate Public Employment Over FIR 'Dispelled' By Negative Final Report Violates Article 14: Rajasthan High Court

Nupur Agrawal

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Depriving Candidate Public Employment Over FIR 'Dispelled' By Negative Final Report Violates Article 14: Rajasthan High Court

Nupur Agrawal

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