JUDGMENT :

Sujit Narayan Prasad, J.

The instant appeal under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent is directed against the order dated 19.01.2021 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.(S) No.6494 of 2011, whereby and whereunder the order of punishment dated 16.12.2011 has been quashed with a direction to extend the consequential benefits within a period of 12 weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order.

2. The brief facts of the case as per the pleadings made in the writ petition which require to be referred herein, read as under :-

The brief facts of the case is that the respondent- writ petitioner had been appointed as an Assistant Engineer sometime in the year 1980 and subsequently, he was promoted to the post of Executive Engineer sometime in the year 2000. After bifurcation of the erstwhile State of Bihar, he was allocated Jharkhand cadre and he gave his joining in Road Construction Department, Government of Jharkhand. The writ petitioner, while posting in the Road Construction Department, was deputed under the Building Construction Department, Ranchi and thereafter, in the year 2005, he was transferred to Building Division, Hazaribagh. In the year 2006, the Road Construction Department deputed the respondent-writ petitioner as Executive Engineer in the Rural Engineering Organization, Simdega. Subsequent thereto, his services were recalled by the Road Construction Department but he was again deputed in the Building Construction Department, Ranchi where he was put under suspension vide notification under Memo No.1073, dated 27.3.2008 in exercise of powers under Rule 49 (1) (a) of the Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1930.

The writ petitioner challenged the order of suspension by filing W.P.(S) No.2110 of 2008 on the ground that even after lapse of three months, no proceeding has been initiated. The said writ petition was disposed of vide order dated 02.07.2008 with a direction upon the respondents to take appropriate decision regarding framing of charges, if they intend to initiate a departmental proceeding against the respondent-writ petitioner and to serve the memorandum of charges within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt / production of a copy of this order and to conclude it within a period of three months thereafter and if the memorandum of charges is not served on the petitioner and/or the departmental proceeding is not concluded within the stipulated period, the petitioner's suspension shall stand automatically revoked.

The order of suspension dated 27.3.2008 was revoked but subsequently, the writ petitioner was again put under suspension on 01.06.2009. He again challenged his suspension order by filing W.P.(S) No.3046 of 2009 and the writ court, vide order dated 19.08.2009, stayed the order of suspension.

Thereafter, a departmental proceeding was initiated against the writ petitioner on the pretext that two criminal cases being RC 17(A)/2009-R and RC 21 (A)/2009-R has been instituted by the Central Bureau of Investigation against him. The Central Bureau of Investigation after investigation submitted a report regarding the aforesaid two criminal cases, in which it has been categorically stated that nothing has been found against the writ petitioner and the cases were closed with the finding that no criminality on the part of the writ petitioner has been found and as such, the suspension was revoked.

However, vide Resolution issued under Memo No.1929 (S), dated 29.03.2011, the Road Construction Department, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi initiated proceeding for imposing minor penalty, under the provisions of Rule 55 of Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1930 and the writ petitioner was directed to report before the Enquiry Officer. The Enquiry Officer found the charges to be proved and the disciplinary authority accepted the same, imposing the punishment of censure including withholding of two annual increments with cumulative effect.

The writ petitioner