Don’t prolong disciplinary action, government told

A division bench comprising Justice Huluvadi G Ramesh and Justice RM Teekaaraman, while refusing to interfere with a single judge’s order, which quashed the order extending the suspension of a Co-operative audit staff , said “Having chosen to take disciplinary action against an employee, who is alleged to be involved in a corruption case, merely prolonging the proceedings by keeping the employee under suspension without even passing a reasoned order and extending the suspension order, will not only lead to mental agony to the employee, but, it would also raise the burden of the exchequer since pay has to be made by way of subsisting allowance, without extracting any work.”

The single judge had ordered the reinstatement of D Shanker in the light of a Supreme Court judgment, where it is held, “A suspension order should not be extended beyond three months. If within this period, the memorandum of charges/charge sheet is not served on the delinquent official, a reasoned order must be passed for extension of the suspension.” 

The bench, on recording the aspect that in compliance with the Supreme Court’s decision, the state has also passed a GO dated July 23, 2015 directing all the Government Secretaries and Department Heads to follow the limitation in the period of suspension in letter and spirit, said, “It appears that the spirit of the very GO has not been complied with in the present case. The single judge, having found that the Cooperative Department has not passed any reasoned order for extension of suspension in respect of the writ petitioner, has quashed the impugned orders and directed the appellants to pass a fresh order with regard to reinstatement, which has also not been compiled with.”