D G NARAYANA S/O LATE NARASIMHAPPA AND ORS Vs. DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER AND DISCIPLINARY AUTHORITY; GENERAL MANAGER AND APPELLATE AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition though had been initially filed by a person who had been dismissed from service of the Canara bank, Tumkur while holding the post of armed guard of currency chest, on the charges of misconduct as per the termination order dated 23-8-2004 passed by the disciplinary authority-first respondent deputy general manager and had been affirmed by the appellate authoritysecond respondent general manager as per the order dated 22-2-2005, dismissing the appeal and affirming the punishment of dismissal from service and the present petition had been filed for quashing of these orders passed by the management and to direct the respondents to reinstate the petitioner into service. With the petitioner having died during the pendency of this writ petition, his legal heirs have come on record to continue the writ petition and is being prosecuted by the legal heirs.

(2.) Writ petition is set down for hearing.

(3.) Petitioner had been charged with serious allegation in terms of charge sheet dated 27-1-2004 [copy at Annexure-A to the writ petition]. The sum and substance of the charge against the petitioner was that he had introduced one person by name Y M Harisha to open an SB account with the Tumkur branch; that he had promised the said person to get an ATM card and persuaded to open an account; that he introduced said Harisha to the bank manager and though the bank manager was initially reluctant to permit to open an account as said Harisha was a resident of Pavagada; that nevertheless petitioner had played an active role in persuading the manager to open the account and while trying to convince the authority concerned, as an ATM card was to be obtained and therefore ultimately it was permitted to open an account on 22-9-2003 by an initial deposit of Rs 2,000/-; that thereafter, it appears, on 3-10-2003, a demand draft for a sum of Rs 9,98,000/- of Town cooperative bank, Sira had been deposited for clearance by the petitioner to the credit of the SB account of said Harisha; that it was drawn on Tumkur DCC bank; that the petitioner played an active role in depositing the DD and had also made an attempt to draw the amount after the amount was credited to the account and for this purpose had also obtained a pre-signed withdrawal slip from said Harisha and as the manager had insisted that the said person should receive the amount and it would not be paid to the petitioner, who was an employee of the bank, he had insisted the cashier that he will collect the amount in the evening and it was later realized that the DD had been a forged one prepared fraudulently by stealing DD format from the issue branch of the bank and more than anything the said Harisha had informed the bank that he had not received any DD; that ever since opening of the account, he had never visited the Tumkur branch of Canara bank and only because he had been insisted by the petitioner to come and sign some papers as some wrong credit has been made to his account and it was required to be reversed and on such premise he had signed papers; that it was the petitioner who was doing all these things; that the cooperative bank also lodged a complaint with the police on 27-7-2003 against the petitioner and he had been arrested and other proceedings went on etc. and in that connection a show cause notice had been issued to the petitioner to show cause as to why disciplinary action should not be taken against him.