IMPORTANT POINT
There is no provision for second show cause notice before imposing penalty.

JUDGMENT

L. NAGESWARA RAO, J.

Leave granted.

2. The Respondent who was working in the Appellant-Bank was removed from service. The order of removal was set aside by a Single Judge of the High Court of Punjab & Haryana at Chandigarh. The judgment of the learned Single Judge was affirmed by a Division Bench. The correctness of the judgment of the High Court is challenged in this Appeal.

3. Articles of Charges framed against the Respondent when he was working as an Officer MMGS-II are as follows:

“CHARGE No. 1 You availed Demand Loans fraudulently under fake signatures of the depositors/ owners of the STDRs.

CHARGE No. 2 You closed certain Demand Loans granted at the branch before the date of inspection and reopened the same on the same day with a view to avoid inspection of securities charged to Demand Loans.

CHARGE No. 3 Certain fraudulent Demand Loans availed by you, were liquidated out of proceeds of cheques purchased by you, drawn on your personal Savings Bank A/c No. 01190077112 maintained at Sector 22, Chandigarh branch through the account of Shri Sant Ram.

CHARGE No. 4 You availed ACC Loans fraudulently under take signatures and without supporting revenue records to justify quantum of loan.

CHARGE No. 5 Certain fraudulent ACC Loan availed by you, were liquidated out of proceeds of cheques purchased by you, drawn on your savings Bank Account No. 01190077112 maintained at Sector 22, Chandigarh Branch, through the accounts of Shri Hira Pal, a part time Sweeper, who has alleged that he has not requested for purchase of any cheque in DD and further alleged that you got blank cheques signed by him drawn on his CC SBF A/c No.48.

CHARGE No. 6 You got purchased your personal cheques in DD at Karnal Branch, without keeping sufficient balance in your account.

CHARGE No. 7 You purchased cheques of heavy amount drawn on your personal savings Bank A/c in the accounts of Shri Hira Pal, a part time sweeper and Shri Sant Ram Sharma, without keeping sufficient balance in your account. Further you exercised financial powers not vested with you. You also caused delay in payment of these DDs.

CHARGE No. 8 Your account shows transactions of heavy amounts, which are much above your known sources of income.

You have thus violated Rule 50 (3) & 50 (4) of State Bank of India Officers Service Rules. ”

4. Shri A.K. Sharma, SMGS-IV was appointed as an Inquiring Authority in terms of Rule 68 (2) (ii) of the State Bank of India Officers Service Rules (for short “the Rules”). A detailed Inquiry was held and the Inquiring Authority concluded that the Charge Nos. 1, 2, 4, 5 and 7 were proved, Charge No. 6 was partly proved and Charge Nos. 3 and 8 were not proved. The Disciplinary Authority disagreed with the findings of the Inquiring Authority qua Charge Nos. 6 and 8. A copy of the Report of the Inquiring Authority along with reasons for the disagreement was forwarded to the Respondent. The Respondent submitted his explanation to the findings of the Inquiring Authority as well as the disagreement of the Disciplinary Authority regarding Charge Nos. 6 and 8.

5. The Disciplinary Authority was not empowered to impose a major penalty as per Rule 66 (3) (iii) of the Rules. He transmitted the entire record which contained the findings of the Inquiring Authority, reasons of disagreement regarding Charge Nos. 6 and 8, the explanation submitted by the Respondent and the bio-data of the Respondent to the Appointing Authority. The Appointing Authority by an Order dated 22nd January, 2000 considered the entire material which was sent to him and imposed a penalty of “removal from service” on the Respondent.

6. The Respondent filed a Writ Petition in the High Court of Punjab & Haryana at Chandigarh questioning the legality of the order of dismissal. A learned Single Judge of the High Court allowed the Writ Petition relying upon the judgment of this Court in State Bank of India & Ors. v. Ranjit Kumar Chakraborty & Anr., (2009) 7 SLR 347 wherein it was held that even when