MUKESH KUMAR PANDEY Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner is an Indian Navy Sailor working in the INS Garuda, Naval Base in Kochi. He obtained employment as Deputy Field Officer in the Cabinet Secretariat of the Union Government. When his application for Discharge from Indian Navy was rejected, he filed W.P.(C)No.36307/2023 in this Court and this Court passed Ext.P1 judgment dtd. 30/11/2023 virtually allowing the writ petition directing to issue orders to discharge the petitioner as prayed for by him and to keep a post of Deputy Field Officer vacant in the establishment of the Cabinet Secretariat for a period of four weeks to enable the petitioner to get appropriate orders for discharge as per Ext.P1 judgment.

(2.) The respondents in Ext.P1, namely, Union of India and its officers filed W.A.No.2240/2023 challenging Ext.P1 judgment on the ground of maintainability of the writ petition as according to them the remedy of the petitioner was before the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) under the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007. The Division Bench of this Court, as per Ext.P2 judgment dtd. 12/2/2024 set aside the judgment of the learned Single Judge accepting the contention of the appellants with respect to the maintainability of the writ petition. The Division Bench directed the petitioner herein to approach the AFT for the consideration of the question of discharge and directing to keep post of Deputy Field Officer vacant in the establishment of the Cabinet Secretariat for a period of three months. It also alerted the AFT to take every endeavour to see that the O.A is disposed of within a period of three months.

(3.) The petitioner approached the AFT, Kochi by filing O.A.No.59/2024 which was allowed by the AFT as per Ext.P3 order dtd. 25/4/2024 with the following directions: