The term "misconduct" in Rule 170 of the Rajasthan Service Rules, 1951, means misconduct arising from ill motive. Acts of negligence, errors of judgment, or innocent mistakes do not constitute misconduct.

1. - Brief facts of the case are that the petitioner entered the service of the Government of Rajasthan on December 12, 1943 and coatinued uptil the age of superannuation i.e. January 31, 1982. The petitioner was holding the post of Tehsildar, Fatehpur District Sikar at the time of his retirement. According to the petitioner, his service record had been neat and clean throughout his service period except an inquiry which was held by serving a chargesheet dated Nov. 17, 1971 under Rule 16 of the Rajasthan Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1958. The petitioner was given 3 charges, firstly, for making a wrong entry in Mutation No. 262 of Village Nimola. According to the petitioner he made this entry on April 24, 1975, on being entered the same by Revenue Inspector Shri Babu Lal. The petitioner had simply entered the mutation according to the entry made by Shri Babu Lal. Secondly, the petitioner was charged with regard to the mutation No. 264 having been done on April 24, 1975 upholding the entries made by the Revenue Inspector Babu Lal. In this charge it was also mentioned that the said village Nimola did not fall within the jurisdiction of the petitioner at that time. Thirdly, the petitioner was charged with regard to the same mutation No. 265 of village Nimola on the same day i.e. April 24, 1975 upholding the entry made by the Revenue Inspector Babu Lal. In the third charge it was further mentioned that the petitioner had certified the above mutation in an illegal manner as the area was not within the jurisdiction of the petitioner. The above charges were furnished to the petitioner vide Annexure I dated November 17, 1977.

2. The petitioner immediately died reply of the said chargesheet in which be emphatically denied all the charges levelled against him and stated that village Nimola was situated under his jurisdiction as Naib Tehsildar and not only the work of mutation but the entire revenue work of village Nimola had been looked after by the petitioner at the relevant time. The village Nimola was situated in sub-Tehsil, Indergarh, which was under the jurisdiction of the petitioner. The petitioner had all the powers of registration, supply of essential commodities to the villagers and all other duties assigned to the Tehsildar were being performed by the petitioner and the Village Nimola was very much under the jurisdiction of the petitioner. It was further submitted in the reply that even if it may be assumed for a moment that the order passed by the petitioner was not a legal order, then the same could have been challenged in appeal under the Tenancy Act. The petitioner had thus submitted that the orders passed by the petitioner at the relevant time, were judicial orders and the same could have been challenged by way of appeal under the Tensney Act. The petitioner had passed the orders of mutation in good faith and without any malice. The petitioner retired having attained the age of superannuation on January 31, 1981 before the conclusion of the said inquiry. After the retirement of the petitioner a show cause notice was give a to the petitioner vide order dated April 27, 1933 (Annexure 3) stating therein to show cause why one-fourth part of his pension for 5 years should not be stopped by way of punishment.

3. The case of the petitioner further is that the Inquiry Officer had clearly held that the petitioner had committed an illegality but that was not malalide and the illegality had been committed in good faith. The petitioner again submitted a reply to the show cause notice that he had not committed any illegality as in fact village Nimola fell within his jurisdiction at the relevant time and this fact had been totally ignored by the Revenue Officer. It was further submitted in the reply that the show cause notice was totally illegal as the petitioner had retired from service on January 31, 1982 and Rule 170 of the Rajasthan Service Rules, 951 under which the said show cause notice was is