TMI Blog2023 (3) TMI 1427X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nd not one of us, who has held judicial office, can claim that we have never passed a wrong order . The report of the Enquiry Committee as also the decision of the High Court is quashed and set aside - the consequences of setting-aside of such order of punishment shall follow and the petitioner shall be entitled to his pension - petition allowed. - HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHUTOSH KUMAR AND HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HARISH KUMAR For the Petitioner : Mr. Abhinav Srivastava, Adv., Mr. Raushan, Adv., Mr. Rudrank Shivam Singh, Adv. For the High Court : Mr. Piyush Lall, Adv. For the State : Mr. Ajay Behari Singh, Sr. Adv., Ms. Kalpana, Adv. ORAL JUDGMENT Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHUTOSH KUMAR Heard Mr. Abhinav Srivastava for the petitioner and Mr. Piyush Lall for the respondent/Patna High Court. The State is represented by Mr. Ajay Behari Sinha. 2. The original writ petitioner, a retired Judicial Officer, has been punished with his entire pension having been permanently withdrawn after excluding the pension amount which was commuted by him. 3. A proceeding was initiated against the petitioner under Rule 43 (b) of the Bihar Pension Rules, 1950 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tted his report on 15.04.2014 before the High Court. 9. The Standing Committee of the High Court, in its meeting dated 29.04.2014 resolved to accept such report and issue a show-cause notice to the petitioner to explain as to why he be not held guilty of the charges proved against him and be punished accordingly. 10. After the receipt of the reply of the petitioner, the Standing Committee of the High Court, considering the gravity of the misconduct proved against the petitioner, directed for withdrawal of his entire pension after excluding the commutation of pension effected before passing of such order. 11. A perusal of the inquiry report reflects that in the case of counterfeit currency notes, where unjustly bail was granted to the accused persons by the petitioner, those two accused persons were apprehended by the police on chase and from the possession of one of whom a mobile telephone and five currency notes of Rs. 500 denomination was recovered. Three of the associates of the two arrested accused persons had managed to flee-away. Rest information was based on the confession of the aforesaid two accused persons which included the fact that three Pakistani nationals ha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed were flouted by the Judicial Officer/the petitioner. 20. However, two facts appear to us to be rather surprising. 21. There is nothing on record to indicate that the orders so passed by the Judicial Officer was assailed before the superior Court and if so, what was the result. 22. During the course of argument, Mr. Lall, the learned Advocate for the High Court submitted that he is in possession of a report that one of the accused persons, after grant of bail, never returned from Nepal. However, such facts have not been brought on record during the proceeding or were placed before the High Court when the decision to punish the petitioner was taken. 23. There is nothing on record also to indicate that after the grant of bail in the counterfeit currency case, how the bail bonds were accepted, which also would have given some idea about the petitioner as a Judicial Officer, showing any unnecessary interest in the release of the accused persons. Merely because the two orders are not justified according to the parameters of law fixed would not lead to the only inescapable conclusion that there was any extraneous consideration in passing of such orders, justifying punishmen ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... assed on extraneous considerations. 30. For the absence of any material to justify the charge of extraneous reasons while passing the orders referred to above, we find that the inquiry report and the decision of the Standing Committee of the High Court in withdrawing the entire pension of the petitioner is unsustainable in the eyes of law. 31. In Krishna Prasad Verma (Dead) through Legal Representatives Vs. The State of Bihar and Ors.; 2019 SCC OnLine SC 1330, the Supreme Court has reiterated that Article 235 of the Constitution of India vests control of the subordinate Courts upon the High Courts. The High Courts exercise disciplinary powers over the subordinate Courts. High Courts ought not to take action against judicial officers only because wrong orders are passed To err is human and not one of us, who has held judicial office, can claim that we have never passed a wrong order . 32. Paragraph 4 of the above decision reads as hereunder :- 4. No doubt, there has to be zero tolerance for corruption and if there are allegations of corruption, misconduct or of acts unbecoming of a judicial officer, these must be dealt with strictly. However, if wrong orders are passed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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