( 1 ) THE petitioner Sri Kedar Nath Sethi is an employee of the Life Insurance Corporation of India since its inception. The history which preceded the constitution of the Corporation in so far as it is relevant, here is that there used to be a number of insurance companies in the country which carried on life insurance business. This business which has been called as controlled business was as a result of the nationalisation transferred and vested in the Corporation. The employees of these erstwhile companies were also transferred in the process under the employment of the corporation.

( 2 ) SECTION 11 of the Life Insurance Corporation Act which made provision for the transfer of the services of such employees laid down that every whole-time employee of an insurer,. e. an erstwhile insurance company whose controlled business had been transferred to and vested in the corporation and who was employed by the insurer wholly or mainly in connection with his controlled business immediately before the appointed day,. e. , the 1st September, 1956, shall, on and from that day become an employee of the Corporation. The section further laid down that such employee shall hold his office in the Corporation by the same tenure, at the same remuneration and upon the same terms and conditions and with the same rights and privileges as to pension and gratuity and other matters- as he would have held the same on the appointed day if the said Act had not been passed and further that he shall continue to do so unless and until his employment in the Corporation is terminated or until his remuneration, terms and conditions are duly altered by the Corporation.

( 3 ) IN pursuance of the above provision Sri Sethi became an employee of the Corporation. It is material to point out just now that according to the terms and conditions applicable to him his salary was below Rs. 500/ -. This will be relevant in considering the applicability of certain regulations which in due course were promulgated by the corporation governing the conditions of service etc. of the staff working under it.

( 4 ) SRI Sethi held the post of Inspector and as such belonged, to the field staff. In the performance of his duty he had to take work from agents and also received premia from policy holders etc. towards policies held or proposed by them. It is alleged that Sri Sethi in the performance of his said duty deceived two items of Rs. 45. 86 np. from one Dr. Kapoor whose life policy had lapsed on account of non-payment but instead of paying the said amounts into the Corporation he retained them and deposited the same in his personal account. A relative charge-sheet accusing him of misappropriating these amounts was therefore delivered to him on the 15th of July, 1959. A second charge-sheet accusing him of misappropriating four other items was also given to him on the 29th August 1959. The charge against him in brief was that he misappropriated those amounts, hence was guilty of misconduct and deserved to be punished.

( 5 ) THE above charge-sheets were given to him by the Zonal Manager Sri T. S. Swaminathan who further suspended him till the completion of the inquiry against him. The inquiry was then entrusted to Sri C. N. Sharma, an officer of the Corporation, who is respondent no. 2.

( 6 ) IT is not necessary for us to state here all these facts which have been alleged in the case by the two parties since they have come to an agreement before us wherefore the petitioner will be allowed by the present Zonal Manager a reasonable opportunity to show cause on the charges delivered to him including an opportunity to adduce such further evidence or to cross-examine any witnesses already examined as he should consider necessary before the final action is decided against him. In view of this agreement it is no longer necessary for us to consider that part of the case which concerns the inquiry by Sri C. N. Sharma and the competence of that officer to hold the same. The