The petitioner was appointed as Assistant Engineer in the erstwhile A.P. State Electricity Board, on 01-11-1976. With the reorganization of the Board into Generation, Transmission and Distribution Companies, he became the employee of A.P. Southern Power Distribution Company of A.P. Ltd., the 2nd respondent herein, and earned promotion, as Divisional Engineer.

2. On 02-01-2003, a trap was laid against the petitioner, by the officials of the A.C.B. He was tried in C.C.No.23 of 2003, by the Court of Special Judge for SPE & ACB Cases, Nellore, for the offence under Section 13(2), read with Section 13(1) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The petitioner was placed under suspension, immediately after the trap. He retired from service on 31-05-2003, on attaining the age of superannuation. Inasmuch as the petitioner was facing trial in the criminal case, he was sanctioned provisional pension, @ Rs.9,759/- per month, vide proceedings dated 29-08-2003, by the 2nd respondent. The Trial Court convicted the petitioner, through its judgment dated 20-06-2007, and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year, and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/-.

Petitioner preferred Cr