ORDER

Heard the parties.

2. The present writ petition is being preferred on behalf of the petitioner for issuance of an appropriate writ/writs, order/order, direction/directions to the concerned respondent authorities to quash the order dated 31.12.2022 contained in memo no. 2203/Ra.Ka. passed by the disciplinary authority i.e. Superintendent of Police, Rail, Jamalpur whereby and where under the petitioner has been inflicted with the punishment of withholding of increment for one year without cumulative effect and also for quashing the order dated 01-06-2023 contained in memo no. 996/Ra.Ka passed by Inspector General of Police, Railway, Bihar, Patna by which the appeal of the petitioner has also been rejected.

3. The case of the petitioner in brief is that the petitioner got appointed to the post of constable in Bihar Police in the year 1997 and was posted at Kishanganj District of Bihar. Subsequently the petitioner was transferred to Katihar in the year 2007 and later was transferred to Muzaffarpur as a constable in Railways. Further in the year 2013 the petitioner was transferred to Katihar Rail Police and was promoted to the post of A.S.I. in the year 2017, post which he was transferred to Jamalpur Rail Police in 2021 and was entrusted with platform duty at the Bhagalpur Platform between 10:00 pm to 06:00 am.

4. Thereafter, on 01.01.2022 vide Memo no. 01/2022, the Police Inspector, Railways Zone, Jamalpur, Bhagalpur complained to the S.P. Rail, Jamalpur alleging that on 30-12-2021 a robbery was committed in train no. 13401 i.e. Bhagalpur Danapur Intercity Express and during the course of investigation , it came to light through the C.C.TV. footage of the platform that in the night of 29.12.2021 between 22:00 PM to 06:00 AM, the petitioner and another constable Sikandar Paswan were not present at the platform but were rather sitting in the Police Station (Sarista), which shows dereliction and ignorance of their lawful duty.

5. In furtherance of the abovementioned complaint, the petitioner was asked to submit his show cause vide Memo. No. 71/Ra.Ka, dated 13.01.2022 within three days. The petitioner submitted his show cause reply dated 17.01.2022, denying the allegations levelled against him, saying therein that he has duly performed his duties but the disciplinary authority i.e. the S.P. Rail, Jamalpur upon being dissatisfied with the show cause of the petitioner, initiated departmental proceeding i.e. Departmental Enquiry No. 20/22 against him vide District Order No. 267/2022 dated 14.02.22 and framed a Memo of Charge against the petitioner.

6. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the Conducting Officer namely Vinay Ram, D.S.P, Rail Police, Jamalpur, in his findings of the departmental proceedings, vide Memo no. 256/22 dated 27.06.2022, exonerated the petitioner and found him to be innocent against the charges framed against him on the ground that the entries made in the station dairy have been duly signed by Police Station In-charge of Rail Police Station Bhagalpur namely Arvind Kumar. He further submits that on the perusal of the case diary it is clear that the petitioner was never absent from the platform duty and he had performed his duties.

7. It is further submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the disciplinary authority upon being dissatisfied by the enquiry report of the earlier conducting officer, ordered a De Novo enquiry on the petitioner vide Memo no. 1186/Ra.Ka., Dated 11.07.2022 and appointed Imran Parwez, D.S.P, Rail, Kiul as Conducting officer, and thereby departmental proceeding i.e. Departmental Enquiry no. 20/22 was again started against the petitioner. He further submits that the later Conducting Officer, vide Memo no. 1065/mikñ, dated 18.11.2022 found the petitioner to be guilty of the charges as contained in the Memo of charge.

8. Further it is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that after the completion of the proceedings of the said departmental enquiry, the S