JAGDISHBHAI M BHATT Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner was posted as Doctor in the Civil Hospital, Gandhinagar. The petitioner was said to be negligent and indifferent in attending and treating a patient of snake bite and therefore, he was placed under suspension by order dated 25.7.1995. Against this order the petitioner preferred a Special Civil Application No. 6657 of 1995 and the same was disposed of by this court on 6.9.1995 with a direction to complete the inquiry within a period of four months from 6.9.1995 subject to the co-operation of the delinquent petitioner. It was also directed that in case the inquiry is not completed within four months the suspension order passed against the petitioner shall cease to be operative on and with effect from February 7,1996. Thereafter the inquiry has been held and in the inquiry the charges have been found to be proved against the petitioner and on that basis the order dated 19.5.2000 has been passed whereby a punishment of stoppage of one annual increment with cumulative effect has been imposed.

(2.) Aforesaid order is assailed in this petition on the ground that a copy of the preliminary report had not been made available to the petitioner and that second show cause notice was also not given to him proposing the punishing before passing the final order and that the inquiry has not been completed within the time schedule as ordered by this Court in the earlier petition.

(3.) Once the full fledged inquiry has been held with reasonable opportunity, there is no question of any grievance about the availability or otherwise of the preliminary inquiry report. Report of preliminary inquiry by itself is not a substantive piece of evidence in the departmental proceedings and therefore, whether a copy of the preliminary report was made available or not does not make any difference and is of no consequence to vitiate the inquiry or to say that reasonable opportunity is denied.