IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.8702 of 2009 Hari Ram Paswan, son of Late Kailash Ram, Resident of village Kachainia (Basgita), P.O. Athar, Police Station Dumraon, District Buxar Versus 1. Bihar State Food & Civil Supplies Corporation Limited through its Managing Director, Sone Bhawan, 5th Floor, Birchand Patel Path, Patna- 1 2. Managing Director, Bihar State Food & Civil Supplies Corporation Limited, Sone Bhawan, 5th Floor, Birchand Patel Path, Patna-1 3. Chief of Administrator-cum- Enquiry Officer, Bihar State Food & Civil Supplies Corporation Limited, Sone Bhawan, 5th Floor, Birchand Patel Path, Patna-1 4. District Manager, State Food Corporation, Nawada For the Petitioner :Mr. Jitendra Prasad Singh, Advocate For the Respondents :M/s R.S. Pradhan, Sr. Advocate & A.N. Rai, Advocate 06/ 19.07.2010 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and the counsel for the Bihar State Food and Civil Supplies Corporation, Patna (hereinafter referred to as the Corporation). 2. Petitioner is aggrieved by the office order, bearing Memo no. 5421 dated 1.7.2008, Annexure-4 to this application, whereunder he has been dismissed from the service of the Corporation on the ground of causing loss/ defalcation to the Corporation of the food grain worth Rs. 38,81,188.93 with direction to recover the said amount from him by instituting criminal and civil case against him. 3. It is submitted on behalf of the petitioner that he has been dismissed from service in the light of the enquiry report dated 31.12.2007, Annexure-2 holding him guilty of causing loss to the Corporation to the tune of Rs. 38,81,188.93 while he served as Godown Manager of Akbarpur, Govindpur and Hisua godown of the Corporation. It is further submitted on behalf of the petitioner that the enquiry report was served on him under letter no. 4024 dated 16.5.2008, Annexure-2 and having perused - 2 - the enquiry report, it transpired that enquiry report is based on another verification report, which is to be found at page 35 of the brief, copy whereof was never served on the petitioner along with the enquiry report served on him under letter dated 16.5.2008, Annexure-2 and as the report which is relied upon by the Enquiry Officer was not served on the petitioner, he did not had the adequate opportunity to defend himself. 4. Counsel for the Corporation has opposed the prayer. He states that verification report referred to in the enquiry report was served on the petitioner by way of counter affidavit and is contained in Annexure-B to the counter affidavit and there from it will appear that three officers of the Corporation made physical verification of the three godowns and thereafter concluded under their finding dated 16/17.8.2005 that food grain worth Rs. 38,81,188.93 was lost from the godown of which petitioner was in-charge. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner, in rejoinder, submitted that the verification report, Annexure-B is only extract of the findings contained in the verification report and the complete verification report has not been annexed with the counter affidavit. It is also submitted that verification report was required to have been served on the petitioner before service of the enquiry report so as to enable the petitioner to cross- examine the officers, who submitted the verification report dated 16/17.8.2005. 6. The report which is relied upon in support of the charge levelled against the petitioner is required to be served on him before recording the findings against him in the enquiry report and as the verification report dated 16/17/.8.2005 was not served on the petitioner, - 3 - punishment order dated 1.7.2008, Annexure-4 as also the enquiry report dated 31.12.2007 served on the petitioner under letter dated 16.5.2008, Annexure-2 are quashed with direction to the authorities of the Corporation to serve a copy of the verification report dated 16/17.8.2005 on the petitioner as also to examine the three officers who made the verification before the Enquiry Officer with opportunity to the petitioner to cross-examine them. 7. Petitioner is directed to appear before the Managing Director of the Corporation within two weeks from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order, who should nominate another Enquiry Officer and ensure service of the complete verification report dated 16/17.8.2005. The Enquiry Officer should fix a date for examination of the three officers, who submitted verification report dated 16/17.8.2005 with opportunity to the petitioner to cross-examine them and appropriate enquiry report be submitted by the Enquiry Officer within a reasonable time of his appointment and appearance of the petitioner. The arrears of the salary of the petitioner from the date of dismissal till the date of this order shall be governed by the result of the enquiry proceeding. During the pendency of the enquiry proceeding, petitioner will remain under the same status in which he was prior to his dismissal. 8. The writ application is, accordingly, disposed of. Arjun/ (V.N. Sinha, J.)