OIL INDIA LIMITED Vs. PROTIM PATNI DEY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is filed against the Judgment and Order dtd. 23/4/2021 passed in W.P. (C) No. 7096/2017, whereby the termination order dtd. 17/5/2017 passed by the Deputy General Manager (Employees Relations, Oil India Limited, Duliajan) as well as order dtd. 13/10/2017 issued by the Resident Chief Executive, Oil India Limited to the respondent/writ petitioner was held to be not sustainable and set aside and the writ petitioner was directed to be reinstated in service.

(2.) The respondent was appointed as a Graduate Teacher for a period of 6 (six) months with effect from 13/7/2011 in the Oil India H.S School, Oil India Limited, Duliajan. On the basis of a complaint submitted by the parents of a girl student of class-IX on 20/9/2011, the petitioner was issued a show cause notice on 23/9/2011 on the charge of sexually harassing the girl student. The petitioner submitted his reply dtd. 24/9/2011 to the show cause notice denying the charges levelled against him. The said show cause notice, however, was thereafter withdrawn and the enquiry proceedings sought to be initiated were also cancelled by order dtd. 19/10/2021. On the same day a second show cause notice dtd. 19/10/2011 was again issued to the petitioner/respondent reiterating the charges that the petitioner had sexually harassed a minor girl child of class-IX by making unwelcome remarks and gestures intending to insult the modesty of the girl student. It was further alleged that he had been coercing and forcing the girl student to agree to his illicit desires and which had caused mental trauma and agony to the girl student. The petitioner submitted his reply on 24/10/2011 denying the charges. Thereafter, by Notice dtd. 5/11/2011, enquiry proceedings were initiated against the petitioner. The said enquiry was completed and in his Enquiry Report dtd. 25/4/2012, the Enquiry Officer held that the charges could not be established against the petitioner.

(3.) The Principal of the school forwarded the Enquiry Report dtd. 25/4/2012 to the petitioner and the petitioner submitted his representation requesting the Principal to accept the findings of the Enquiry Officer as per the Enquiry Report dtd. 25/4/2012. The principal of the school, however, refused to accept the findings of the Enquiry Officer and vide order dtd. 16/8/2012 the penalty of dismissal from service was imposed on the petitioner. Being aggrieved the petitioner filed a complaint before the Regional Labour Commissioner Central at Dibrugarh. A conciliation proceeding was attempted which however failed prompting the petitioner to approached this Court for filing a writ petition being WP (C) No. 3980/2015. The said writ petition was disposed of vide order dtd. 9/2/2017 holding that although a school was an establishment under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the petitioner who was a school teacher was not a workman under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. This Court further held that since no opportunity was granted to the petitioner to make any representation against the reasons allegedly made, by the disciplinary authority, disagreeing with the findings in the Enquiry Report, the order of dismissal dtd. 16/8/2012, was set aside and the appellant/Oil India Limited was given liberty to continue the departmental proceedings from the stage of furnishing to the petitioner, the reasons of disciplinary authority disagreeing with the Enquiry Report and to provide the petitioner with an opportunity to make a representations against those reasons.