IMTIYAZ AHMAD LARA Vs. STATE OF J&K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The entire gamut of the controversy raised here in this petition revolves round the plea whether the Government order bearing No. 1276-GAD of 2016 dated 21st of November, 2016, issued by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, in exercise of powers conferred by Article 226(2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Regulations, whereby notice was given to the petitioner, namely, Shri Imtiyaz Ahmad Lara, I/C AEE, PMGSY, Uri (under suspension) to the effect that he having already rendered 24 years of service, shall retire from service w.e.f. the forenoon of the 22ndday of November, 2016, can withstand the test of judicial scrutiny.

(2.) The pith and core of the petition of the petitioner is that during the entire tenure of his service, he worked with great deal of honesty and dedication at different places of posting and, prior to the day, the order aforesaid (impugned herein this petition) was issued, he was holding the post of I/C AEE, PMGSY, Uri, and at the relevant point of time he was under suspension. His past Service carrier is unblemished and, all along, he has been promoted to various posts on the basis of his suitability, merit and excellent service record. The accusation leveled against the petitioner is that, while he was posted as Assistant Engineer, Public Health Engineering, Division Baramulla, during the period December, 2003 to March, 2006, he has wrongly authenticated the name of one of the Daily Wagers in the 'Pay Bill' and portrayed him to have been regularized, for which FIR No.13/2010 dated 16th of April, 2010, has been registered by the Vigilance Organization, Kashmir, against the petitioner and other accused persons. On the basis of the said FIR, sanction was accorded for the prosecution of the petitioner on 26th of November, 2015 and, subsequently, the petitioner was placed under suspension vide Government order bearing No. 116-PW(R&B) of 2016 dated 30th of March, 2016. In the said FIR, the final report has been laid before the Court of learned Special Judge, Anti-Corruption, Baramulla and the case is pending trial before the said Court. The Respondent Department, instead of nailing down the need to bring the trial of the aforesaid case to the logical conclusion, issued the order impugned in the writ petition, whereby the compulsory retirement of the petitioner was ordered under Article 226(2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Regulations.

(3.) The Respondents have resisted and controverted the petition of the petitioner, on the grounds, inter alia, that the Government has to perform a multitude of tasks in order to implement various welfare measures of public interest, and the paramount aim is of providing clean and effective administration to the people of the State. In order to make the administration effective, a periodic review of all the Officers is taken up by the Government, the aim and object being to encourage honest and efficient Government servants and, simultaneously, to weed out the inefficient and corrupt Officers from the services in the public interest. Whileas, various incentives and awards are given to the honest and efficient Officers/Officials, recourse is taken to the provisions of Article 226 (2) and (3) of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Regulations, 1956, for the removal of such Government officials from the State services, who have become deadwood on account of their indulging in inefficient and corrupt practices. The order of compulsory retirement passed in the case of the petitioner is based on the object of weeding out the deadwood from the State services. Article 226 (2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Regulations is designed to infuse the administration with initiative for better administration and for augmenting the general efficiency so as to meet the expanding horizons and cater to the new challenges faced by the State to provide sensitivity, probity, non-irritative public relation and enthusiastic creativity, which can be achieved by eliminating the deadwood. In order to consider the case of the petitioner for compulsory retirement, under and in terms of the Government order bearing No. 17-GAD (Vig.) 2015 dated 20thof May, 2015, sanction was accorded to the constitution of a Committee to consider the cases of the Officers/officials for compulsory retirement. The record regarding the involvement of the petitioner in corrupt practices was placed before the Committee. The cases, in which FIRs have been lodged and are under probe, were placed before the Committee, including the case of the petitioner bearing FIR No. 13/2010 registered by the Vigilance Organization, Kashmir, for the commission of offences punishable under Section 5(2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption Act, Samvat, 2006 read with Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC), for fraudulent regularization of Daily Rated Workers and subsequent drawal of their salaries by the officials of the PHE, Division, Baramulla, as part of a criminal conspiracy. The Committee, on consideration of the available records, observed that the petitioner does not enjoy good reputation in the public due to his inconsistent conduct over a period of time and that the Annual Confidential Reports (ACRs) of the petitioner are incomplete. The Committee also observed that during the investigation, it transpired that the petitioner, in his capacity as AEE, PHE, Baramulla, in league with co-conspirators, had manipulated the record of the Daily Workers who were shown appointed/regularized as Helpers in pursuance of a Government Order, when the names of the beneficiaries actually did not exist in the said order and that the beneficiaries were neither engaged nor had they ever worked as Daily Rated Workers in the PHE, Division, Baramulla. From the perusal of the seized documents, it also got revealed that the list of regularized Daily Rated Workers annexed with the said Government Order did not mention the names of the beneficiaries and, as such, they were not entitled to such regularization. The petitioner, thus, was found engaged in misuse of his official position, forgery and causing loss to the State exchequer amounting to gross misconduct, unbecoming of a Government servant. The Committee, therefore, recommended for the compulsory retirement of the petitioner in public interest under Article 226(2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Regulations. The recommendations so made were accepted by the Competent Authority, as a consequence of which, the impugned order was issued. It has been, accordingly, pleaded by the Respondent-State that the impugned order is a legal one. It is in accordance with law. The writ petition, as such, is legally misconceived, untenable, without any merit, and, in sequel thereto, merits dismissal.