BASISHTHAPRASADSINHA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ application has been filed for direction for payment of post-retirement benefits, salary in respect of the suspension period, time bound promotion and its consequential benefits as well as monetary benefits of the upgradation of post and revision of pay scale.

(2.) The petitioner was subjected to departmental proceeding and criminal prosecution. He was placed under suspension on 12-1-1978. In the criminal case he was acquitted on 9-1-1986. It is stated that in the departmental proceeding also the enquiry officer on 28 4-1986 submitted report exonerating him of the charges. His suspension was revoked on 21-5-1986 and he was reinstated on the post. The petitioner retired from service on reaching the age of superannuation on 31-1-1992. However, his claims remained outstanding on account of the pendency of the departmental proceeding as no final decision was taken even after the receipt of the enquiry report. Accordingly, the present writ application was filed on 11-3-1992. An order was passed by the competent authority, namely, Registrar, Co-operative societies on 12-8-1992 directing that the petitioner will not be entitled to salary or allowance except subsistence allowance for the suspension period and that the period shall be treated as period of absence from duty. The petitioner has challenged the said order by supplementary petition.

(3.) Mr. Prabhat Kumar Verma, learned counsel for the petitioner, raised the following contentions (i) after retirement of the government servant, the pending departmental proceeding comes to an end and no punishment can be imposed on him (ii) no reason has been assigned for imposing punishment in disagreement with the findings of the Enquiry Officer and (iii) no opportunity of hearing was given to the petitioner.