State of Jharkhand vs Umesh Kumar Singh and Others

This appeal has been preferred by the State of Jharkhand against the order dated 29.9.2006 passed by the learned single Judge who had been pleased to allow the writ petition filed by the petitioner/respondent herein for quashing the departmental proceeding which had been initiated on the charge that he had embezzled a sum of rupees one lakh and odd while he was posted in the State of Bihar. Thereafter the State of Jharkhand came into existence after bifurcation of the State of Bihar and the appellant-State, instead of transferring the enquiry to the State of Jharkhand, proceeded with the ex-parte enquiry against the petitioner/respondent herein and finally imposed punishment on him. The delinquent, who was the petitioner before the learned single Judge, the respondent herein, challenged the ex-parte enquiry which had been concluded against him by the State of Bihar without any notice from the Stale of Jharkliand. The learned single Judge, on a consideration of the plea of the delinquent and also the State, was pleased to set aside the departmental proceeding which had been initiated against him as the learned single Judge was of the view that after bifurcation the enquiry ought to have been transferred to the State of Jharkhand after which notice should have been issued to him and thereafter the enquiry could have proceeded. The State of Jharkhand, therefore, has preferred this appeal, which is now before us.

Mr. M.K. Laik, learned Sr. S.C.I. appearing for the appellant/State has submitted that the learned single Judge was in error in quashing the departmental proceeding as the State of Bihar had already proceeded with the enquiry, concluded the same and finally imposed punishment. However, he has not been able to advance any sustainable argument in support of his submission, as even according to him, it is the State of Jharkhand which could have proceeded with the enquiry against the employee, like the respondent, who had opted for the State of Jharkhand and was posted in the State of Jharkhand.

He further submitted that, in fact, the State of Jharkhand has also issued notice to the respondent to proceed with the enquiry and thus it has complied with the direction of the learned single Judge who had also granted liberty to the State of Jharkhand to proceed with the enquiry.

Taking into consideration the aforementioned facts, we find no justification for the State of Jharkhand to prefer this appeal against the order of the learned single Judge specially when we have not been able to find any ground to assail the Judgment and order of the learned single Judge. As the appellant/State has already initiated the enquiry in pursuance to the order passed by the learned single Judge, we deem it fit and proper to dismiss this appeal as infructuous. However, we direct the Stale of Jharkhand to proceed with the enquiry against the respondents and to conclude it expeditiously but not later than the period of four months from today as the matter has been dragging since 2003.