JUDGMENT

Nanavati, J.-Leave granted.

2. The short question that arises for consideration in this appeal is whether the power of review available to the Chairman and Managing Director of the Allahabad Bank under Regulation 18 of the Allahabad Bank Officer Employees (Discipline and Appeal) Regulations, 1976 could have been exercised by the Executive Director who, in absence of the Chairman and Managing Director, was entrusted with current charge of the duties of offices of the Chairman and Managing Director.

3. The appellant is an employee of the Allahabad Bank. A departmental enquiry was instituted against him for certain acts of misconduct. By an order dated June 30, 1987, the disciplinary authority, by way of penalty, reduced him to a lower stage in the time scale of his pay. As the penalty imposed upon the appellant was found to be inadequate by the Executive Director who was then holding charge of the posts of Chairman and Managing Director, he passed an order dated 30th December, 1987 setting aside the said order of penalty and proposing to impose major penalty of reduction from MMG Scale II to JMG Grade Scale I and to fix his pay in the JMG Scale I at the minimum of that scale. By that order the appellant was called upon to submit his representation as to why the proposed enhanced penalty should not be imposed upon him. After considering the representation made by the appellant the Executive Director by order dated 5.2.1988 imposed penalty of reduction from MMG Scale II to JMG Scale I and fixed the pay of the appellant at the minimum of that scale. The appellant challenged that order by filing a writ petition in the Allahabad High Court. It was dismissed as the High Court did not find any substance in any of the contentions raised before it.

4. Two contentions have been raised before us. Firstly, it was contended that the order enhancing the penalty was passed by Shri Wadhwa in his capacity as the Executive Director and as the Executive Director is not specified in the Regulations as the reviewing authority, the order passed by him should be regarded as null and void. Secondly, and in the alternative, it was contended that under the Regulations, only the Chairman and Managing Director are specified as reviewing authorities and, therefore, Shri Wadhwa who was the Executive Director and was merely holding current charge of duties of the posts of chairman and Managing Director could not have reviewed the order of penalty passed by the disciplinary authority.

5. Before we consider these contentions it may be stated that till 23.6.1987 Shri R. Srinivasan was the Chairman and Managing Director of the Allahabad Bank. As he was appoined Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of India by Notification dated 23.6.1987, he was directed to hand over current charge of duties of the post which he was holding to the Executive Director Shri R.L.Wadhwa. Pursuant to the said Notification Shri Srinivasan handed over and Shri Wadhwa took over the charge of the posts of Chairman and Managing Director on 24.6.1987. The resultant position was that thereafter Shri Wadhwa continued to hold substantively the post of Executive Director and at the same time was also holding charge of the offices of the Chairman and Managing Director. Subsequently, on 29th April, 1988 Shri Wadhwa was appointed as Managing Director and also as Chairman of the Bank.

6. In support of his first contention the learned counsel drew our attention to the order-cum-show cause notice dated 30.12.1987 and the impugned order dated 5.2.1988. Both are signed by Shri Wadhwa as Executive Director. However, we find that, in both these orders it is stated that they were being passed by him in terms of Regulation 18. That would mean that while passing those orders, Shri Wadhwa was discharging the functions of Chairman and Managing Director. Shri Wadhwa was only holding charge of the offices of the Chairman and Managing Director and, therefore, he could not have signed those orders as Cha