1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE SIDE JURISDICTION W.P. NO. 2714 OF 2001 WITH CIVIL APPLN.NO. 1067 OF 2007 Mrs.Sheila Rajan ] Residing at Prakash Park ] B-9, Lulla Nagar, ] Pune-411040 ]..Petitioner Vs. 1. Union of India, through ] The Secretary, Ministry of ] Defence, New Delhi ] 110 001. ] 2. Director General Armed ] Forces Medical Services ] Ministry of Defence, ] `M ’ Block, DHQ PO ] New Delhi 110 001 ] 3. Commandant, ] Armed Forces, Medical ] College, Pune 411 040 ]..Respondents .... Mr.G.K.Masand Adv. for Petitioner Mr.Vinod Joshi with Mr.Y.R.Mishra Adv. for Union of India .... CORAM : BILAL NAZKI AND SMT.V.K.TAHILRAMANI,JJ. RESERVED ON : JUNE 09, 2009 PRONOUNCED ON: JULY 10, 2009 2 ORAL JUDGMENT:[ PER V.K.TAHILRAMANI,J.] 1. By this writ petition, the petitioner has challenged the order dated 27th June, 2000 passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal by which Original Application No.73 of 1993 filed by the Petitioner, was dismissed. The petitioner has also sought the relief of quashing of order of punishment dated 18th October, 1991 passed by the Disciplinary Authority and order dated 20th April, 1992 passed by the Appellate Authority and has sought appropriate directions to the Respondents to restore the petitioner to the position held by her immediately prior to the passing of the punishment order dated 18th October, 1991 with all consequential benefits. 2. Facts as disclosed in the petition, may be summarized as under: After the appointment of the petitioner as Speech Therapist on 15th November, 1971 at Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, the petitioner noticed that while the post of Speech Therapist held by her, was classified as Group `C ” post at all other hospitals of the Central Government, the post was classified in either `Group A ’ or `Group B ’. The petitioner took up the matter with higher authorities for upgradation of the post. Not being able to get the justice at the hands of her employer, the petitioner approached Central Administrative Tribunal. 3. It is the petitioner's case that on account of the petitioner ’s ventilating her grievance with regard to upgradation of post of Speech Therapist before Central Administrative Tribunal by filing Original Application No.299 of 1990, 3 her superiors became antagonised. Due to this, petitioner was served with the charge memo dated 18th January, 1991 charging her as follows: (a) Refusal to treat the daughter of Junior Warrant Officer S.Mandal on 8th May, 1990; (b) Misbehaved with Senior Officer namely Lt. Col. O P Pahuja, Reader of ENT Department on 4th June, 1990. 4. On the petitioner ’s denying the charges, Inquiry Officer was appointed. According to the petitioner, the said Inquiry Officer without following the principles of natural justice and without affording reasonable opportunity to the petitioner to defend herself, held the charges proved. The contention of the petitioner is that the inquiry report is required to be furnished to the delinquent official under Sub-Rule (1)(A) of Rule 15 contained in Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, (for short “C.C.S. Rules ”) that before any decision thereon is taken, to enable the delinquent official to make his/her submission against the inquiry report, the Disciplinary Authority straightway imposed upon the petitioner the penalty of reduction in her pay by two stages by order dated 18th October, 1991. 5. Sub-Rule (1)(A) of Rule 15 is reproduced hereinafter: “15(1- A) The disciplinary authority shall forward or cause to be forwarded a copy of report of the inquiry, if any, held by the disciplinary authority or where the disciplinary authority is not the inquiring authority a copy of the report of the inquiring authority to the Government servant who shall be required to submit, if he so desires, 4 his written representation or submission to the disciplinary authority within fifteen days, irrespective of whether the report is favourable or not to the Government servant. ” 6. The appeal dated 15th November, 1991 filed by the petitioner before the Appellate Authority has been disposed of by the Appellate Authority by order dated 20th April, 1992. It is submitted that the said order is cryptic order. 7. Thereafter the petitioner filed Original Application No. 73 of 1993 before the Central Government Tribunal. The Central Government Tribunal rejected the Original Application against which the present writ petition has been filed. 8. The Tribunal ’s order has been challenged in the present writ petition on various grounds which are enumerated at grounds (a) to (g) of paragraph 11 of the writ petition. 9. The petitioner ’s case is that the Appellate Authority is required to deal with the appeal against the order of punishment as per Rule 27 of C.C.S. Rules. Sub-Rule (2) is relevant for the purpose of this writ petition and the same is reproduced below: “27(2) In the case of an appeal against an order imposing any of the penalties specified in Rule 11 or enhancing any penalty imposed under the said rules, the Appellate Authority shall consider:- (a) whether the procedure laid down in these rules has been complied with and if not, whether such non-compliance has resulted in the violation of any provisions of the Constitution of India or in the 5 failure of justice; (b) whether the findings of the disciplinary authority are warranted by the evidence on the record; and (c) whether the penalty or the enhanced penalty imposed is adequate, inadequate or severe; and pass orders- (i) confirming, enhancing, reducing or setting aside the penalty; or (ii) remitting the case to the authority which imposed or enhanced the penalty or to any other authority with such direction as it may deem fit in the circumstances of these cases; provided that - (i) the Commission shall be consulted in all cases where such consultation is necessary: (ii) if such enhanced penalty which the Appellate Authority proposes to impose is one of the penalties specified in clauses (v) to (ix) of Rule 11 and an inquiry under Rule 14 has not already been held in the case, the appellate authority shall, subject to the provisions of Rule 19, itself hold such inquiry or direct that such inquiry be held in accordance with the provisions of Rule 14 and thereafter, on a consideration of the proceedings of such inquiry and make such orders as it may deem fit: (iii) if the enhanced penalty which the Appellate Authority proposes to impose is one of the penalties specified in clauses (v) to (ix) of 6 Rule 11 has been held in the case, the appellate authority shall make such orders as it may deem fit after the appellant has been given a reasonable opportunity of making a representation against the proposed penalty; and (iv)no order imposing an enhanced penalty shall be made in any case unless the appellant has been given a reasonable opportunity, as far as may be in accordance with the provisions of Rule 16, of making a representation against such enhanced penalty ”. 10.On a plain reading of the order of the Tribunal vis-a-vis the order of the Appellate Authority it shows that the Appellate Authority has not at all considered whether the procedure prescribed in Rule 27 had been complied with and if not, whether such non-compliance had resulted in violation of any provisions of the Constitution of India or in violation of justice and whether the finding of the Disciplinary Authority is warranted by evidence on record and whether the penalty imposed on the petitioner was adequate, inadequate or severe. 11.We are satisfied that the order of the Appellate Authority has been passed in a mechanical and arbitrary manner with a closed mind and deserves to be set aside. In this view of the matter, order of the Appellate Authority dated 20th April, 1992 as well as order of the Tribunal dated 27th June, 2000 are set aside. The matter is remanded back to the Tribunal/Disciplinary Authority for 7 reconsideration. 12.Writ petition is allowed in the above terms. Rule made absolute accordingly. In view of the disposal of the writ petition, Civil Application No.1067 of 2007 is disposed of accordingly. [ BILAL NAZKI,J. ] [ SMT.V.K.TAHILRAMANI,J.]