DR. SUBHASH CHANDRA SRIVASTAVA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, a retired Professor of the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) is before this Court against the denial of his prayer by the respondents to treat the period under suspension as period in service and for grant of increment in salary from July, 2018, and for payment of arrears etc.

(2.) The brief facts are that the petitioner during his service on 8/11/2017 was placed under suspension following a complaint of harassment by a Ph.D. Scholar, which led to the registration of Tura Women Police Station case No. 76(11) 2017 under Ss. 506 and 509. The petitioner, during the period of suspension had challenged the same by way of WP(C). No. 18 of 2018, and this Court by order dtd. 5/2/2019, directed the NEHU to consider his case for reinstatement as per rules. Consequently, the petitioner was reinstated on 15/3/2019.

(3.) Thereafter, the criminal case against the petitioner was compounded before the trial court by order dtd. 13/12/2019, passed in G.R.Case No.336/2017. The petitioner then submitted a representation on 6/2/2020, before the Registrar NEHU, enclosing the order dtd. 13/12/2019 with a request for closure of the departmental inquiry which had been instituted against him and for treatment of his suspension period i.e., 8/11/2017 to 15/3/2019 as a period under service. The departmental inquiry against the petitioner was then closed after due deliberation in the 182nd Executive Council Meeting of NEHU by a resolution. The petitioner thereafter, had represented most recently, by representations dtd. 21/6/2022 and 21/11/2022, requesting the University to treat the suspension period as period in service, release the arrears of salary, grant the due annual increment and to re-adjust subsequent increments with financial benefits. However, the requests were rejected by NEHU in its meeting of the 187th Executive Council.