Non-disclosure of a pending criminal case by a candidate for public service appointment undermines credibility, justifying cancellation of selection.

ORDER :

R.N.MANJULA, J.

This Writ Petition has been filed to issue a Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus to call for the records relating to the order of 1st respondent made in memorandum No.3715/OTD-F2/2013 dated 02.07.2018 and to quash the same and consequently, direct the respondents 1 and 2 to appoint the petitioner as Junior Inspector of Cooperative Societies with all service and monetary benefits thereto.

2. Heard Mr.L.Chandrakumar, learned counsel for the petitioner, Mrs.G.Hema, learned Standing Counsel for R1 and Mr.A.M.Ayyathurai, learned Government Advocate for R2 and perused the materials available on record.

3. The petitioner had applied to the post of Junior Inspector of Co- operative Societies in response to the notification issued by the first respondent for Group III-A services. The petitioner was provisionally selected for appointment through the first respondent's memorandum No.3715/OTD-F2/2013 dated 21.12.2017. Previously, the petitioner was working as a Temporary Clerk in Pitchivakkam Primary Agricultural Cooperative Society. While working as a Clerk in the Society, it is alleged that the then president and the Secretary and other employees of the Society have committed certain irregularities and caused loss to the Society. Surcharge proceedings were initiated under Section 81 of the Co-operative Societies Act in which the petitioner was also one of the persons who faced the proceedings.

4. In the surcharge proceedings No.7/2015-2016 A3, a final order has been passed on 22.06.2016 under which, the petitioner was discharged from the said allegations. Yet another surcharge proceedings was also initiated and that was also resulted in discharge of the petitioner vide order dated 31.01.2018. However, a criminal case has been registered against the petitioner in this regard in Crime.No.4 of 2017 under which, the petitioner was given with the show cause notice by the first respondent on 12.04.2018. The petitioner submitted his reply on 07.05.2018 and the same was not accepted and the petitioner's provisional selection was cancelled through the impugned proceedings dated 02.07.2018. Aggrieved over the same, the petitioner is before this Court.

5. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that there is no suppression of material information by the petitioner. The petitioner himself has not known about his involvement in the criminal case in Crime No.4 of 2017. Hence, the petitioner did not intentionally fail to disclose any information about the criminal case. The alleged occurrence had taken place in the year 2013 and in all the surcharge proceedings, the petitioner was discharged. The petitioner had not been summoned in the criminal case and even the said case was dropped against him during December 2017. Hence, the appointment of the petitioner cannot be cancelled on the ground that the petitioner had failed to disclose his involvement in the criminal case.

6. However, the learned Standing Counsel for the first respondent submitted that before entering into the Government service, records of the candidate should be clean. Only then, he could be issued with the appointment order. A disciplinary action has been initiated against the petitioner and he was imposed with the punishment of stoppage of increment for three months without cumulative effect through the proceedings dated 17.10.2019 of the President of Pichivakkam Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Society. So far as the criminal cases in C.C.No.1 of 2016 and CC.No.4 of 2017 are concerned, they are pending before the Judicial Magistrate No.1, Chengalpet. The petitioner did not disclose the above fact and only when verification is done, it came to light that FIR has been filed against the petitioner.

7. It is further submitted by the learned Standing Counsel for the first respondent that the substitute candidate who was next in the selected category was selected and the supplementary list was sent to the second respondent Department on 15.04.2019. Hence, there