IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) MONDAY, THE TWENTY THIRD DAY OF MARCH, TWO THOUSAND NINE PRESENT: THE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.5924 of 2009 Between: Md. Moinuddin ..... Petitioner AND The Depot Manager, APSRTC, Bus Depot, Medchal, Ranga Reddy District. .....Respondent Counsel for the petitioner : Sri V. Narsimha Goud This Court made the following: THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.5924 of 2009 ORDER:- This writ petition is filed for a Writ of Certiorari to quash award dated 23.12.2000 in I.D.No.48 of 2000 on the file of the Industrial Tribunal-II, Hyderabad (for short, ‘the Tribunal’). The petitioner was a conductor of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation working at Medchal depot. While conducting a bus on 21.06.1993 between Tujalpur and Ramayanpet, he was found to have indulged in cash and ticket irregularities. Disciplinary proceedings ensued in which the following charges were framed against the petitioner. “1. For having violated the rule of issue and start which is misconduct on your part vide Reg.No.28(VI)(a) of APSRTC Employees (Conduct) Reg. 1963. 2. For having collected the fare and failed to issue tickets to two lady passengers found travelling without tickets who boarded in your bus at Ribipet and bound for Pedda Malla Reddy ex-stage No.28 to 23 which is misconduct on your part vide Reg.28(vi)(a) and (xxxi) of APSRTC Employees (Conduct) Reg. 1963. 3. For having collected the fare and failed to issue tickets to two lady passengers, who were travelling without tickets in your bus and boarded at Jangaon and bound for Pedda Malla Reddy ex-stage No.27 to 23 which is misconduct on your part vide Reg.28(vi)(a) and (xxxi) of APSRTC Employees (Conduct) Reg. 1963. 4. For having failed to collect the fare and failed to issue tickets to a lady passenger found travelling without ticket who boarded in your bus at Anchanoor and bound for Kachapur ex-stage No.26 to 24 which is misconduct on your part vide Reg.28(vi)(a) and (xxxi) of APSRTC Employees (Conduct) Reg. 1963.” Following the domestic enquiry, the petitioner was removed from service. Having exhausted the departmental remedies, he moved Industrial Tribunal-II, Hyderabad, by way of I.D.No.48 of 2000 under Section 2A(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. After a thorough enquiry, the Tribunal upheld the order of the domestic tribunal removing the petitioner from service. The petitioner, therefore, filed this writ petition assailing the said award. I have heard Sri V. Narsimha Goud, learned counsel for the petitioner and perused the record. The facts narrated above show that the petitioner has slept over the matter for nearly 8 ½ years before filing the present writ petition. The law is well settled that the unexplained long delay and laches disentitle a person to avail the discretionary jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. (see State of M.P. v. Bhailal Bhai[1], Trilokchand and Motichand v. M.B.Munshi[2], Rabindranath v. Union of India[3], City and Industrial Development Corporation v. Dosu Aardeshir Bhiwandiwala and others[4] and Ashok Kumar Mishra and another v. Collector, Raipur and others[5]). The only reason furnished by the petitioner for this unduly long delay is that as he was in financial crisis apart from having family worries, he could not file this writ petition earlier. In my considered view, this reason does not constitute sufficient cause for the inordinate delay of more than 8 ½ years in filing the writ petition. As the petitioner was not diligent in pursuing his remedy, I am not inclined to exercise the discretionary jurisdiction of this Court at this length of time. The writ petition is therefore dismissed without going into the merits of the case. As a sequel to dismissal of the writ petition, WPMP.No.7738 of 2009 filed by the petitioner for interim relief is also dismissed. ____________________________ C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY, J Date: 23.03.2009 ES [1] AIR 1964 SC 1006 [2] (1969) 1 SCC 110 [3] AIR 1970 SC 470 [4] (2009) 1 SCC 168 [5] AIR 1980 SC 112