Writ Petition Against Charge-Sheet Not Maintainable Unless Issued By Authority Not Competent To Initiate Disciplinary Action: Rajasthan HC

The Rajasthan High Court has dismissed a writ petition filed by a driver of a public transport seeking quashing of a charge-sheet which was served upon him by Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation with the allegation that certain passengers were found traveling without ticket on the ground that writ petition generally does not lie against the charge-sheet unless it is established that the same had been issued by an authority not competent to initiate the disciplinary proceedings.The single judge bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand observed:“…the Government is not precluded from initiating disciplinary proceedings against an employee for violation of conduct rules even if the alleged misconduct took place while performing judicial or quasi-judicial functions. In the present case, the charge-sheet clearly indicates that the petitioner while discharging duties had acted negligently and misused his post amounting to misconduct or violation of the Conduct Rules.”The case of the petitioner was that a memorandum of charge-sheet was served upon him on February 22, 2011 with the allegation that certain passengers were found without ticket. The Counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that the said charge-sheet was issued to the petitioner without any conclusive evidence with a mala fide intention to spoil the career of the petitioner.On the other hand, the Counsel appearing for the respondents contended that for the misconduct of carrying the passengers without ticket, a memorandum of charge-sheet has been issued to the petitioner wherein allegations have been levelled against him. It was further argued that the petitioner is at liberty to submit his reply and defence against the charges and, thereafter, the Inquiry Officer and the Disciplinary Authority would conclude the matter after taking into account the defence of the petitioner.Hence, it was submitted that since there is a Disciplinary Authority to adjudicate the veracity of the allegations levelled against the petitioner, hence, interference of this Court is not warranted.The Court noted that the petitioner can put his defence by way of filling his reply and producing adequate evidence in support of his defence and the Court cannot act as an Inquiry Officer or Disciplinary Authority to adjudicate the correctness of the allegations. The Court relied upon the judgments of the Supreme Court in Union of India & Ors. v. K.K. Dhawan (1993) 2 SCC 56 and State of Orissa v. Sangram Keshari Misra (2010) 13 SCC 311.“It is a settled law that charge-sheet cannot be interfered with by the Court lightly or in a routine manner. The delinquent employee instead of seeking quashing of the charge-sheet at the initial stage must submit his/her reply before the Enquiry Officer/Disciplinary Authority and wait for conclusion of the proceedings,” the Court said. Thus, the Court dismissed the Writ Petition filed by the petitioner. However, the Court noted that the petitioner would be at liberty to raise all his available defence before the Inquiry Officer or Disciplinary Authority.Case Title: Laxman Singh Gurjar v. Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation & 2 Ors. Case No.: S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 6611/2011Citation: Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Raj) 1Click Here To Read/Download Order

Writ Petition Against Charge-Sheet Not Maintainable Unless Issued By Authority Not Competent To Initiate Disciplinary Action: Rajasthan HC

Udit Singh

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