STATE OF BIHAR Vs. YAVITRI DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard learned Counsel for the appellants and learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents.

(2.) This intra Court appeal is directed against the judgment, dated 30.03.2016, passed, by the learned Single Judge, in CWJC No. 17091 of 2008, by which he has set aside the order affirming Memo No. 894, dated 21.08.2003, issued under the signature of Deputy Secretary, Water Resources Department, Government of Bihar, whereby the deceased husband of the respondent no. 1 (hereinafter referred to as the 'original respondent') was inflicted punishment of dismissal from service.

(3.) The factual matrix of the instant case is that the original respondent was holding the post of Cashier, in Sone Canal Division, Ara, under the Water Resource Department, Government of Bihar. On 31.08.1991, he was posted as Divisional Cashier in the Office of the Executive Engineer, Sone Canal Division, Ara. In July, 1995, one Birendra Singh Prabhakar joined as Executive Engineer in the said in Sone Canal Division, Ara. One key of the official chest was used to be kept by the Cashier of the Office and another key of the said chest was used to be kept by the Executive Engineer. Since the original respondent failed to deposit Rs. 2,66,319/-, as the closing balance on 31.03.1997, under the head 2701 in the Treasury and he also failed to make available the official records, such as cash book, cheque book, cash in chest etc. for handing over and taking over the charge, for which he was informed several times, an F.I.R. was lodged against him and others. It transpired in course of investigation that large scale defalcation of the Government money had taken place in the Sone Canal Division, Ara. The Chief Engineer, Water Resources Department, Dehri, made a request for special audit and for this purpose, to send information to the Account General, Bihar/Ranchi for needful action. In the mean time, the District Magistrate, Bhojpur, deputed a Magistrate, who, in presence of the then Executive Engineer of the Sone Canal Division, Ara, broke open the lock of the said official chest and the alamirah, and prepared an inventory of the cash and the items found. Since only Rs. 1/- was found in the chest, an audit was conducted. The Financial Advisor -cum- Chief Accounts Officer of the Water Resources Department made a detailed audit of the accounts between 17.07.1997 and 26.07.2007 and submitted his audit report, which transpired huge defalcation of Government money, for which recovery was recommended against the original respondent and the then Executive Engineer.