SURENDRA RAMTAKE Vs. STATE OF C.G.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The challenge made in the instant petition is to the order dtd. 3/3/2015 (Annexure P-1) passed by the Inspector General of Police, Durg in appeal filed by the petitioners whereby the appellate authority while reinstating the service of petitioners denied the back wages and modified the order of major punishment of dismissal from service and instead imposed major penalty of stoppage of an increment for one year in the pay scale of petitioners with non-cumulative effect from the date of their re-entry in service. The appellate authority further applying the principle of "No Work No Pay", directed that the period spent under suspension shall be counted as the period spent out of service from the date of dismissal till the date of their arrival. The said order dtd. 3/3/2015 (Annexure P-1) was subjected to review in Mercy Petition filed before the Director General of Police (DGP) and by order dtd. 10/3/2016, (Annexure P-2) the DGP affirmed the order of appellate authority and rejected the mercy petition, which is also under challenge in this petition.

(2.) According to the petitioner, in the intervening night of 17th/18th of September, 1996 at midnight while the petitioners were posted in Police Station, Manpur, about 50 - 60 out-lawed people (Naxalites) armed with guns attacked the Manpur Police Station with an intention to kill the police personnel and loot the the arms and ammunition available in Police Station. On that date, the petitioners after completing their duty were relaxing at the place adjacent to Police Station whereas the other persons were on duty in the Police Station. During attack, the Naxalites took hostage of one of the Police personnel and looted arms. As a consequence, the persons who were on duty in Police Station and the present petitioners who were though off the duty and were taking rest at Police Barack were charge sheeted. Pursuant to the incident, the services of the personnel who were on duty in Police Station were terminated without any enquiry under Article 311, clause 2(b) of the Constitution of India whereas against the present petitioners, departmental enquiry was initiated.

(3.) The joint inquiry was held against all the delinquents including the petitioners and all they were held guilty of the charges and by order dtd. 24/10/1997 (Annexure P-7) all the petitioners were dismissed from service. The main allegation was that the act of petitioners has led to covered expression before the public at large whereby the image of police department was tarnished. The said order was subject of appeal before the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Balaghat Range which was rejected on 30/3/1999 vide Annexure P-8. Being aggrieved by such order, the petitioner preferred Original Application (OA) before the State Administrative Tribunal. In the meanwhile, since SAT was abolished, the matters were transferred to the High Court and the OAs preferred by the petitioners were converted as WPS No.1830/2005, WPS No.1825/2005, WPS No.1830/2005 & WPS No. 584 of 2014. Eventually, the said writ petitions came to be decided on 8/9/2014 (Annexure P-9) whereby this Court held that the appellate order does not contain any reasons nor it shows compliance of statutory requirement, as such, remanded the case to the appellate authority to adjudicate the appeal afresh.