JUDGMENT :

Sandeep V. Marne, J.

Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of parties taken up for final hearing.

2. By the present petition, the petitioner assails judgment and order dated 16.08.2017 passed by the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal, Bench at Aurangabad (for short “Tribunal”) in Original Application No. 482 of 2015. Before the Tribunal, the petitioner had challenged (i) order passed by the Disciplinary Authority dated 15.12.2008 imposing the penalty of reduction to the minimum pay scale (ii) order dated 23.09.2010 passed by the Appellate Authority modifying the penalty to that of reduction to the minimum of the pay scale permanently and (iii) order dated 03.03.2015 rejecting the revision petition. By the judgment and order impugned in the present petition, the Tribunal has proceeded to dismiss the original application.

3. We must note at the outset that the Tribunal has erroneously observed in para No. 2 of the judgment that the petitioner was challenging the order of dismissal from service. By order dated 15.12.2008, the disciplinary authority had imposed penalty of reduction to the minimum of the pay scale without specifying any period. The appellate aut