BRIJESH KUMAR RAI Vs. INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. K.N. Chowdhury, learned senior counsel for the appellant. Also heard Mr. A.B. Dey, learned Standing Counsel, IIT for the respondents.

(2.) This is a writ appeal filed by the appellant/writ petitioner challenging the order dtd. 1/11/2019 passed by the learned Single Judge in WP(C) No. 7478/2019.

(3.) The material facts for our consideration are that the appellant/writ petitioner before this Court is an Assistant Professor in the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (for short hereinafter referred to as "IIT"), Guwahati, who is presently facing a disciplinary proceeding. The reason for him to approach this Court by means of the writ petition was that he had questioned the authority of the Director of the IIT for initiating the disciplinary proceedings. His case was that only the appointing authority, which admittedly in his case was the Board of Governors of the Institute, was authorized to initiate the disciplinary proceedings against him and since the admitted position is that the disciplinary proceedings have been initiated by an authority which is subordinate to the Board of Governors, which in this case is the Director of the Institute, it is in violation of the law and this procedure adopted by the Institute also deprives the appellant/writ petitioner from the protection given to him under Clause (1) and (2) of Article 311 of the Constitution of India. The Rules which the appellant/writ petitioner had invoked in his favour are the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965 [for short, hereinafter referred to as the 'CCS(CCA) Rules'] and he would argue that initiation of the disciplinary proceedings against him is in violation of the same.