ORDER (ORAL)

By Hon’ble Mr. Tarun Shridhar, Member (A)

The applicant was appointed as a Warder in the Prisons Department and posted in Central Jail, Tihar, Govt. of NCT of Delhi vide an appointment order dated 13.01.2020. His appointment was pursuant to the selection made by the DSSSB by way of an open selection examination. Upon this appointment, the applicant joined his duties and had been performing as such when during the period November 2021 to February 2022, the Prisons Department decided to conduct biometric and photograph verification of all its employees posted in the Central Jail, Tihar. For this purpose, they issued a list of employees who were to appear for this Biometric and Photograph verification. However, it is stated that the name of the present applicant, who too was an employee posted as a Warder in the Central Jail, Tihar, was not mentioned in the list. Accordingly, he did not appear for the said Biometric and Photograph verification. On his failure to appear, a show cause notice was issued to him on 21.04.2022, to which he furnished his reply immediately thereafter. This was followed by another show cause notice, to which too the applicant furnished his reply. However, not satisfied with the reply furnished by the applicant, the respondents resorted to the provisions of Sub-Rule (1) of Rule 5 of Central Civil Services (Temporary Services) Rules, 1965 and vide an order dated 08.09.2022, terminated him from service waiving of the period of notice by giving him a sum equivalent to his pay and allowances for the said mandatory period.

2. Aggrieved by this action of the respondents, the applicant has approached this Tribunal by virtue of the present OA praying for the following reliefs :

(a) quash and set aside impugned order dated

08.09.2022 (Annexure A/1) and (b) direct the respondents to reinstate the applicant forthwith and (c) accord all consequential benefits including monetary and seniority benefits (d) award costs of the proceedings and (e) pass any other order/direction which this Hon’ble Tribunal deems fit and proper in favour of the applicant and against the respondents in the facts and circumstances of the case.

3. Learned counsel representing the applicant, relying upon the pleadings on record, has briefly taken us to the background and history of the case. He submits that omission on the part of the applicant to appear for biometric and photograph verification was innocent and bona fide as his name did not figure in the list of employees who were directed to appear for such a biometric verification.

4. Drawing attention to the show cause notice dated 21.04.2022, he points out that the show cause notice itself mentions that the name of Mr. Vinay Kumar, the present applicant, was left out from the list of candidates to be verified. It goes on to clarify that it was inadvertently done.

5. However, the respondents have contended that since the exercise of Biometric and Photograph identification was widely publicized and known, it was also the responsibility of the applicant to present himself for such a verification. The applicant, in reply to the said show cause notice, submitted that he was new to the service and he had been performing his duties diligently and honestly and further submitted that he was not aware that he was to report to headquarters for such a Biometric and Photograph verification. He further stated in the reply that, as and when called, he shall appear for this verification.

6. In order the obviate the possibility of any ambiguity, the contents of the show cause notice dated 21.01.2022 and the reply thereto furnished by the applicant are reproduced below verbatim :

Show Cause Notice PRISONS HEAD QUARTER: NEAR LAJWANTI GARDEN CHOWK JANAKPURI: NEW DELH F.16(02)/ESTT./PHQ/2021/003632272/5398-04 Dated: 21/4/2022 SHOW CAUSE NOTICE Whereas, Sh. VINAY KUMAR, WARDER-2066, Physically posted at CJ- 1 & salary purpose at CJ-02 was well aware of the Biometric and Photograph Verification being conduc