C. Hari Shankar, J.

1. Baldev Raj – petitioner before me and Conductor with the respondent- Corporation before he was shown the door on 3rd July, 1990 has invoked the extraordinary jurisdiction, conferred on this Court by Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, against orders dated 23rd February, 2004 and 5th April, 2004, passed by the Labour Court No. 1, Karkardooma, Delhi.

2. The opinion which I propose to take, in the present case, obviates the necessity of any exhaustive allusion to facts. (Indeed, any such allusion would advisably merit eschewal, lest it prejudices the case of either party.) The case at hand would, therefore, have to be set out, in the proverbial “nutshell”, as under.

3. The petitioner, while working as a conductor with the respondent, was issued a charge sheet, dated 14th December, 1988, essentially alleging that he had overcharged certain passengers. Submission of reply, by the petitioner, thereto, was inexorably followed by a domestic inquiry, which commenced on 26th May, 1989 and was concluded, on 10th July, 1989. The inquiry report, submitted by the Inquiry Officer (hereinafter referred to as “IO’’), pursuant thereto, held the charges ag