SUSHILA DEVI Vs. STATE OF HARYANA AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner's husband died in harness on July 27, 2002. He was a policeman. She had two minor children to look after and an ailing mother. She applied for appointment as a Lady Constable in place of her late husband under the Ex-Gratia Scheme. She was offered appointment by letter dated July 14, 2003 of the Director General of Police, Haryana against an existing vacancy in District Police, Karnal on cancellation of her first appointment in District Police Gurgaon on June 19, 2003. Though issued appointment letter she was not actually appointed as her educational certificate of 10+2 submitted by her in support of her case issued by the Bihar Intermediate Education Council, Patna was on verification found to be fake and false. The permission to appoint the petitioner was withdrawn by order dated June 11, 2004. Not only was the order withdrawn but FIR No.211 dated May 17, 2006 was registered against her under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 511 IPC in Police Station, Civil Lines, Karnal.

(2.) The Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Karnal by her judgment dated February 16, 2013 acquitted the petitioner of the charges framed against her by giving her the benefit of doubt. Prosecution claimed that the Bihar Board by its report Ex.PW-3/F declared the educational documents to be bogus but the prosecution did not produce any person from the Bihar Board to testify to this fact. Therefore, the report was held to be per se inadmissible by the magistrate. The prosecution failed to produce formal evidence and this is how the acquittal came by giving the benefit of doubt.

(3.) Apart from the criminal case, the cause of action had accrued to the petitioner on June 11, 2004 when the impugned order was passed withholding and cancelling the offer of appointment for her to have prayed to court for setting aside the order withdrawing offer of appointment. The petitioner lied low and waited till her acquittal on February 16, 2013, only then to make a prayer to the Director General of Police, Haryana by her representation dated September 16, 2013 for restoration of appointment. The request was by reason of acquittal in the criminal case. This was followed by a reminder request of January 16, 2015 praying for recall of adverse order and for taking a sympathetic view due to the acquittal in the criminal case. She sought appointment to the post of Lady Constable under the Ex-Gratia scheme on compassionate grounds. The representations unheeded were followed by a legal notice (Annex P-10) issued on May 09, 2015 by her counsel.