AB GANI BHAT Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD .

(2.) DESPITE retirement during his suspension the petitioner has filed this petition for seeking direction against the respondents with respect to his arrears of salary, payment of gratuity and settlement of the pension case. The petitioner is admitted to have been placed under suspension on account of his involvement in FIR 4 of 1982 along with other employees of the Food and Supplies Departments allegedly for having misappropriated huge sums of money. The averments of the petitioner that the criminal case tiled against him has been closed as NOT PROVED have not been denied as the respondents have opted not to file any counter affidavit despite opportunity. In the absence of the pungency of any criminal case or conviction by a competent court of jurisdiction, the respondents have no right to with hold the pay or refuse to pay the gratuity or delay in settling the case of pension of the petitioner. After his suspension on account of the pungency of the criminal case the petitioner was legally entitled to be reinstated along with consequential benefits. Similarly the amount of gratuity which is his hard earned property could not be taken away by any administrative action.

(3.) UNDER the circumstances the writ petition is allowed with a direction to the respondents to treat the suspension period of the petitioner as on duty and settle his claim of full pay for 14 months. The respondents are further directed to settle pension case of the petitioner and for payment of gratuity within a period of three months falling which the petitioner shall be entitled to payment of interest at the rate of 12% per -annum w. e. f. the dates the amounts become due and payable to him. As the respondents have not seriously contested the case, the parties are left to bear their own costs.