RAMJI SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is at the instance of an ex-soldier, who joined the Army in the year 1963 in Unit No. 501, Field Survey Engineer Group located at Dehradun.

(2.) During his service career, he was promoted to the rank of Naik and was further promoted to the rank of Acting Havaldar w.e.f. 10.8.1981. While acting as a Havaldar, there was an accident on 27.3.1982, when he was driving army vehicle in the city of Dehradun, in which one Laxman Singh, Lance Naik, lost his life. The petitioner was, therefore, tried by way of District Court Martial, presumably under Section 69 of the Army Act for the civil offence punishable under Section 304-A of the Indian Penal Code. In the Court Martial, he was found guilty and was awarded following sentence by the order dated 14.11.1982: (a) to be reduced to ranks (b) to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one month in military custody w.e.f. 14 November, 1982. Accordingly, it seems that he was taken into custody and started serving out sentence of one month rigorous imprisonment. This sentence was confirmed by the Confirming Authority on 15.12.1982.

(3.) The verdict of the District Court Martial as also the Confirmation order was challenged by way of petition under Section 164 (2) of the Army Act. This petition under Section 164 (2) of the Army Act, came to be allowed in the sense that the sentence/ punishment awarded by the District Court Martial was commuted on the following grounds. For the sake of convenience, we reproduce the whole order dated 2.3.1981. The order runs as under: