Termination of employment without inquiry or opportunity for defense violates principles of natural justice.

The present petition is filed challenging the termination order dated 22.06.2022 whereby the services of the petitioner on the post of Gram Rojgar Sahayak have been terminated by order dated 22.06.2022 on the ground that the petitioner had incarcerated in the jail for more than 48 hours in a criminal case.

02. Succinctly stated the facts of the case are that the petitioner was appointed on the contractual post of Gram Rojgar Sahayak vide order dated 23.06.2010 and his services were continued from time to time. The petitioner served on his post by discharging his duties sincerely and offering his personal services meticulously and with utmost sincerity and not a single stain had been ever recorded in his entire service career. However, on the basis of a bogus and frivolous complaint lodged by some miscreants at various platforms, a Show Cause Notice was issued to the petitioner and in a predetermined manner, the Respondent No.5 held the petitioner and other office bearers of Gram Panchayat guilty for alleged misappropriation of funds of Rs. 17,99,191/-. Subsequently,without there being any adjudication under Section 89 of the Panchayat Act, order for recovery of Rs.5,99,730/- under section 90 of the MP Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam , 1993 was issued straight away against the petitioner. The CEO, Jila Panchayat surprisingly in his order dated 02.02.2022 merely mentions about misappropriation of funds and irregularities but the whole order is silent on the issue that what irregularity has been committed by the petitioner or how the petitioner is responsible for the alleged irregularity. The said order is passed in flagrant violation of principle of natural and also the recovery had been ordered without there being any adjudication under Section 89 of the Panchayat Raj Adhniyam, 1993. Thereafter the notices under Section 92 (2) for recovery of the amount was issued to the petitioner in terms of the aforementioned order of recovery, failing which the petitioner had to be incarcerated in civil jail as provided under sub section 2 of Section 92 of the Act. The petitioner thereafter deposited the amount of Rs.2,50,000/- in the account of the concerned authority. On the basis of the same allegation, an FIR was registered and the petitioner remained in jail for more than 48 hours. The respondent No.3 passed the impugned order dated 22.06.2022 terminating the services of the petitioner from the post of Gram Rojgar Sahayak on account of registration of FIR and being subjected to incarceration of 48 hours. The impugned order was passed without holding any enquiry and without giving any opportunity of hearing to the petitioner. Being aggrieved 2 WP-2031-2024 IND:34448 Signed by: SOUMYA by the said order, the petitioner filed an appeal before the respondent No.2 and by order dated 17.11.2022, the said appeal was also dismissed

03. Counsel for the petitioner argued that on the similar allegations, the recovery was ordered and the said recovery was challenged before this Court in W.P. No.6613/2023 which was allowed and disposed of by order dated 02.02.2022 with an observation the respondents are at liberty to proceed in accordance with the law after taking recourse of provision of section 49 of the Act of 1993. It is argued that the termination of service of a Gram Rojgar Sahayak on the ground of incarceration of 48 hours in police without giving any show cause notice or opportunity of hearing to the petitioner has already been quashed by the Division Bench in a case of Appusingh vs. The State of MP & Ors. ( WP No.1551/2023 ) decided on 26.07.2024. The relevant para of the order of the Division Bench is reproduced as under:-

8. Learned counsel for the appellant relied upon the Division Bench judgment passed in the case of Rahul Tripathi Vs. Rajeev Gandhi Shiksha Mission , Bhopal & Others reported in 2001(3) MPLJ 616 and Jitendra Vs. State of M.P. & Others reported in 2008(4) MPLJ 670 of this Court wherein it is held that the order of terminatio