The termination of an employee without considering their representations and without proving misconduct is illegal.

JUDGMENT

Rekha Palli, J. (Oral)

1. The present petition preferred under Article 227 of the Constitution of India by the erstwhile North Delhi Municipal Corporation (now Municipal Corporation of Delhi) seeks to assail the award dated 05.09.2014 passed by the learned Labour Court in I.D.No.173/2010. Vide the impugned award, the learned Labour Court has after coming to a conclusion that the services of the respondent/workman were illegally terminated by the respondent w.e.f. 28.07.2010 without holding any inquiry, directed the petitioner to reinstate him with full back wages w.e.f. 01.07.2006, the date on which a demand notice seeking his reinstatement with back wages was issued on his behalf.

2. As per the factual matrix emerging from the record, the respondent had joined the services as a Mali in 1981 and was regularised w.e.f 01.04.1988. While he was working on the said post, an FIR No. 632/2003 under Section 342/376 Indian Penal Code came to be registered against him and consequently he was taken into custody. The respondent came to be acquitted of all charges in the criminal proceedings and was therefore released from jail on 16.04.2004. It is his case that he reported for assignment of duties to his superior officer on 04.06.2004 and submitted his joining letter but was not permitted to join duty. On 10.09.2004, the petitioner sent a notice to the respondent alleging therein that he was absent without leave since 29.12.2003 and must report for duty. The petitioner replied to the said letter on 20.09.2004 by stating therein that he had reported about his false implication in a criminal case to his immediate superior i.e. to Garden Chaudhary Richpal and had immediately upon being acquitted reported back for duty on 04.06.2004 but was not being permitted to do so despite his repeated personal visits to the office.

3. The respondent thereafter submitted further applications seeking permission to rejoin duty on 03.02.2005, 08.08.2005, 09.08.2005, 02.09.2005 and 20.06.2006 followed by a legal demand notice dated 01.07.2006. Upon receiving no reply, the petitioner approached the Conciliation Officer with his claim petition. The conciliation proceedings failed and consequently a reference to the learned Labour Court was made on 23.03.2010. Soon thereafter the petitioner issued a circular introducing bio-metric system of attendance and pursuant to the orders passed by the Division Bench on 26.05.2010 in W.P.(C) 854/2010 informed the Delhi Police about the list of employees who had not yet been covered under the bio-metric attendance system as also a list of the ghost employees i.e. employees whose name were on the roll but were not found to be existing. The respondent's name was not included in the list furnished to the Delhi Police.

4. Upon the reference being made of the respondent's claim petition, the petitioner filed a written statement before the learned Labour Court wherein while admitting that the respondent's name had been struck off the strength w.e.f 28.07.2010 without holding any inquiry against him. It was contended by the petitioner that there was enough evidence to establish the misconduct on the part of the respondent, who had abandoned service. In the light of this stand taken by the petitioner, the learned Labour Court granted liberty to both sides to lead evidence and after consideration thereof, the Court came to a conclusion that the petitioner had failed to prove any misconduct on the part of the respondent.

5. After noticing the fact that no inquiry whatsoever had been ever conducted against the respondent, the learned Labour Court held that that despite opportunity being granted to the petitioner to lead evidence, it had not led even an of iota of evidence to show as to whether the respondent's representation seeking permission to report on duty was ever considered. It therefore came to the conclusion that the termination of the respondent from service without considering his representation seeking perm