ORDER :

SUJIT NARAYAN PRASAD, J.

The instant intra-court appeal, under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent, is directed against the order/judgment dated 19.07.2021 passed by learned Single Judge of this Court in W.P.(S) No. 2130 of 2010 whereby and whereunder the order of punishment dated 12.02.2009 passed against the appellant by which the punishment has been imposed of lowering down his pay scale by two stages and his pay scale has been reduced from Rs. 7780 + 2400/- (BP+GP) to Rs. 7170+2400/- (BP+GP) for two years with a further direction that during this period he will not earn any benefit of annual increment and after end of the period the pay scale will affect further annual increment, has been refused to be interfered with by dismissing the writ petition.

2. Brief facts of the case as per the pleadings made in the writ proceeding, which are required to be enumerated herein, read as under: –

The appellant-petitioner had joined the service on 31st May, 1999 as Head Constable in the Central Security Force and worked with full satisfaction of his superior authorities at different place of his posing.

While the appellant-petitioner was posted in the Central Industrial Security Force Unit at Bokaro Steel Limited, Bokaro, a Memo was issued to him on 06.11.2008 by which a decision was taken to initiate disciplinary proceeding against him for the allegation that he, at the time of duty, had taken intoxicated material and behaved in a manner which is not supposed to be behaved by a public servant and, as such, the same is misconduct and indiscipline and further, in intoxicated condition, the petitioner had committed altercation with the other members of the personnel.

After issuance of memorandum of charge, the petitioner participated in the departmental proceeding. The enquiry officer, after conducting the enquiry, found the charges proved against the petitioner and submitted his enquiry report to the disciplinary authority.

The disciplinary authority, thereafter, passed the order on 12.02.2009 inflicting major punishment upon the petitioner of lowering down his pay scale by two stages and his pay scale has been reduced from Rs. 7780 + 2400/- (BP+GP) to Rs. 7170+2400/- (BP+GP) for two years and that during this period he will not earn any benefit of annual increment and after end of the period the pay scale will affect further annual increment.

The writ petitioner, being aggrieved with the order of punishment dated 12.02.2009 passed upon the memorandum of charge pertaining to use of intoxicated article which has been considered to be a gross misconduct and indiscipline being a member of the disciplined force, preferred appeal before the appellate authority but the same has been dismissed vide order dated 16.07.2009.

Thereafter, the appellant-petitioner filed revision application before the revisional authority but the same has also been dismissed vide order dated 04.01.2010.

The appellant-petitioner, being aggrieved with the order dated 12.02.2009 passed by the disciplinary authority, order dated 16.07.2009 by the appellate authority and the order dated 04.01.2010 passed by the revisional authority, has preferred writ petition before this Court being W.P.(S) No. 2130 of 2010 and the learned Single Judge of this Court, after taking into consideration the scope of judicial review conferred to the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India and considering the nature of charge of taking intoxicated material and the behavior which is not supposed by a public servant, has refused to interfere with the order of punishment by dismissing the writ petition, which is the subject matter of the instant intra-court appeal.

3. Mr. Niranjan Kumar, learned counsel appearing for the appellant-petitioner, has submitted that the learned Single Judge has not appreciated the fact about applicability of the punishment as has been inflicted as enshrined under Rule 34(iv) of the Central Industrial Security Force Rules, 2001 (hereinafter to be referred