Court Overturns Voluntary Retirement Rejection, Orders Disciplinary Proceedings Completion

Background

In this case, an Executive Officer Grade I, referred to as the respondent, had applied for voluntary retirement from service. However, the Appointing Authority, the second appellant, rejected the respondent's request due to ongoing disciplinary proceedings against him for alleged misappropriation of temple funds.

Arguments

The respondent argued that his application for voluntary retirement was submitted on August 3, 2020, and under the Fundamental Rules (FR), the Appointing Authority was required to either accept or reject the request within three months. Since the Appointing Authority's decision was communicated to the respondent on November 12, 2020, which was beyond the three-month period, the respondent claimed that he should be deemed to have been voluntarily retired from service.

The Appointing Authority, on the other hand, contended that the respondent's application was received on August 13, 2020, and the decision to reject the request was made on November 5, 2020, which was within the three-month period as per FR 56(3).

Court's Analysis and Reasoning

The court examined the relevant provisions of FR 56(3), which stipulate that the three-month notice period for voluntary retirement should be reckoned from the date the Appointing Authority receives the request. The court found that the respondent's application was received by the Appointing Authority on August 13, 2020, and the decision to reject the request was made on November 5, 2020, which was within the three-month period.

The court also noted that the respondent himself had acknowledged the Appointing Authority's order dated November 5, 2020, in a subsequent letter, indicating that he had acquiesced to the decision.

Decision

The court set aside the order of the learned Single Judge, who had earlier allowed the respondent's writ petition and deemed him to have been voluntarily retired from service. The court directed the disciplinary authority to conclude the proceedings against the respondent within six months, and the respondent was ordered to cooperate with the inquiry.