IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.12634 of 2004 UMESH PRASAD SINGH, son of Indra Narayan Singh, resident of village – Chuwa, P S – Khaira, District – Jamui, at present posted as Sub-Inspector of Police, Police Line, Darbhanga. Versus 1. THE STATE OF BIHAR. 2. Deputy Secretary to the Government, Department of Home (Special), Government of Bihar, Patna. 3. Deputy Inspector General of Police, Darbhanga Range, Darbhanga. 4. Superintendent of Police, Madhubani. ----------- For the petitioner: M/S. Tej Bahadur Singh, Sr. Advocate, Brisketu Sharan Pandey and Gyan Shankar. For the State : JC to GP 7. ------- 04. 6.8.2010 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the State. The Court is not convinced about the so-called illegality in the order of punishment of withholding one increment with cumulative effect, which is an order contained in annexure-1. However, submission made at the bar with regard to yet another punishment which came to be imposed subsequently by the State, which is the order dated 28th April, 2004, contained in annexure-2, merits consideration. Learned senior counsel for the petitioner submits that a separate order of punishment stating that the petitioner was not entitled to any payment except subsistence allowance for the period of suspension, came to be passed not by the disciplinary authority but by the State Government at its own level, as would be evident from the communication itself. Under what circumstances the order came to be passed by the authority is not fully explained. In addition to that, it is 2 also submitted that Rule 97 of the Bihar Service Code has not been followed before imposing this punishment. The law on this subject is already settled by various decisions one of which has been relied by the petitioner in the case of Biswanath Mitra v. State of Bihar and others, 2003 (4) PLJR 71. In absence of any averment made on behalf of the State that the procedure under section 97(3) was followed, punishment of withholding of salary and other allowance except subsistence allowance for the period of suspension contained in annexure-2, in so far it relates to the petitioner, is hereby quashed . The writ application is allowed. rkp ( Ajay Kumar Tripathi, J.)