M.MARUTHUPANDI Vs. DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner herein was appointed as Grade-II Police Constable on 09.06.1993 and subsequently promoted as Grade-I Police Constable. In connection with his involvement in a criminal case in Crime No.2600 of 2005, he was placed under suspension on 11.08.2005. The criminal case involved leakage of question papers during recruitment of Grade-II Police during the year 2005. 92 persons were implicated in the criminal case and the petitioner was arrayed as the 26th accused. The case later came to be investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and on 12.12.2006, a final report was filed wherein petitioner's name was dropped.

(2.) In the meantime, the petitioner was issued with a charge memo on 19.08.2005, pursuant to which, a departmental enquiry was conducted and the charges against the petitioner were held to be proved. The fourth respondent herein had awarded a punishment of 'postponement of increment for two years without cumulative effect'. The punishment order, which came to be challenged, was also rejected by the first respondent on 21.11.2016, as against which, the present writ petition has been filed.

(3.) The learned counsel for the petitioner has placed his arguments on the ground of discrimination. According to learned counsel, the co-delinquent namely Mr.Dharmaraj, who was also arrayed as an accused in the criminal case, was dealt with similar delinquencies and was awarded with punishment of 'Black Mark'. Likewise, the other co-delinquent in the criminal case, namely Mr.T.Radhakrishnan, I.A.S., was neither placed under suspension nor was any departmental action initiated against him. Obviously, no punishment was awarded to him. In view of these discriminations, the learned counsel would submit that punishment of 'postponement of increment for two years without cumulative effect' is liable to be set aside.