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2016 (6) TMI 183 - HC - Indian LawsDelay in initiating the disciplinary proceedings against the officer - Whether the delay of more than twelve years in initiating the proceedings, that remained unexplained, strikes at the root of the charge memo and the proceedings - Held that:- on the alleged irregularities against respondent pertaining to the period April 2002 to February 2003, the memorandum of charge was issued on 5.3.2014/7.3.2014 i.e. at a distance of twelve years. The only explanation rendered by the petitioners is that since initiation of a departmental proceeding is a very serious exercise and involves threadbare examination of the materials available, as such, care has to be taken to ensure that an innocent is not subjected to harassment nor an errant officer escapes punishment because of hasty and scantily deliberated decision in a given case. This explanation to justify the delay is weak, uninspiring and made as a matter of course. No cogent explanation is set forth to give the least benefit of credence to the said explanation. The irregularities which were the subject matter of the disciplinary proceedings initiated vide Charge Memo is stated to have taken place in 2002-2003. Apparently, the department cannot feign ignorance and say that it came to learn of it only in the year 2014. This is belied by the very fact that the department was alive to the investigations made by CBI and the proceedings before the DRI. It is not comprehended as to why it had taken more than 12 years to initiate the disciplinary proceedings. The delay itself goes to show that the department did not consider the matter as of any serious import affecting the discipline of the department. Here the petitioners have utterly failed to provide sufficient and reasonable explanation for the delay in initiating the disciplinary proceedings against respondent. In our view and having regard to the law laid down by the Apex Court in the case of State of Madhya Pradesh v. Bani Singh [1990 (4) TMI 286 - Supreme Court Of India] and in the case of P.V.Mahadevan v. M.D.,T.N.Housing Board [2005 (8) TMI 674 - Supreme Court Of India], as to the effect of inordinate and unexplained delay vis-à-vis initiation of disciplinary proceedings, the present writ petition is devoid of legal merits. Therefore, for all the reasons stated above, the judgment of the Tribunal cannot be faulted on any legally tenable grounds. Whether the departmental proceedings be allowed to stand when on the same set of charges, evidence, witnesses and circumstances the respondent Bamin Tari was exonerated by statutory authorities - Held that:- this writ petition being without merit on the first point itself, no further elaboration is made to discuss and adjudicate on the second point, save and except, that the Apex Court decisions in Capt M. Paul Anthony v. Bharat Gold Mines Ltd. [1999 (3) TMI 625 - Supreme Court of India] and G.M.Tank v. State of Gujarat [2006 (5) TMI 509 - SUPREME COUR] meets the second point. - Decided against the petitioner
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