HON’BLE MRS. JUSTI CE SUREPALLI NANDA WRI T PETI TI ON No.15961 OF 2023

ORDER:

Heard Sri C.Rajashekar Reddy, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner and learned Assistant Government Pleader for Services Home appearing on behalf of the respondents.

2. The petitioner approached the Court seeking prayer as under:

“…to issue a writ order or orders more particularly one in the nature of writ of mandamus by declaring the Impugned Proc No A4/05/Major-PR-2017-19, DO. No. 798/2019, Dt 24/07/ 2019 of the 2^nd respondent and further Impugned Appeal Rejection order in R.O.No. 943/2019, Rc No. 886/D141/HR/2019, dt 6/11/2019 of the 3^rd respondent and further consequential Impugned Revision Rejection order in R.O.No.21/2020 Rc.No.1242/PR/WZ/2019, dt 27/01/2020 of the 4th respondent and final consequential Impugned Review Rejection order in C.No. A4/11/Misc-PR/NRPT/2022, dt 11/05/2022 of the 5th respondent by imposing a punishment of PPI for one year without effect on future increment and pension and the suspension period from 19/8/2017 to 31/12/2017 (134 days) is treated as not on duty is highly illegal arbitrary unreasonable discriminatory and without any application of mind and also violative of Article 14,16 and 21 of the Constitution of India and declare the same as bad in law and set- aside the same and Consequently direct the respondents to count the service of the petitioner with notionally along with his batch mates i.e., 29/3/2018 in the promotion category i.e., AR Head Constable and with all consequential benefits and to pass…”

3. The case of the petitioner in brief as per the averments made in the affidavit filed by the petitioner in support of the present Writ Petition is as under:-

The petitioner was appointed as AR Police Constable on

20.08.1995 and posted in Mahoobnagar headquarters. On certain allegations FIRs were lodged on 30.06.2017, consequently criminal cases were registered vide C.C. No 358 of 17 and C.C No 359 of 2017 on the file of Hon’ble Court of special Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Prohibition and Excise at Mahaboobnagar and the petitioner was acquitted from both the cases by judgment dated 02.05.2019. The petitioner was removed from the service by the 2^nd respondent vide proceedings dated 19.08.2017 based on the same FIR and charges were framed on 5.01.2018, for which the petitioner filed a written statement of defence. However, the enquiry officer conducted enquiry behind the back of the petitioner and without considering the petitioner’s defence and subsequently submitted a report on 07.06.2019 by stating that the charges framed against the petitioner were proved. The Petitioner submitted the detailed explanation to the said enquiry report on 08.07.2019, but the 2^nd respondent vide orders dated 24.7.2019 awarded the punishment of PPI for one year without effect on future increment and pension and the suspension period from 19.08.2017 to 31.12.2017 i.e., 134 days treated as not on duty without considering the said explanation given by the petitioner and also without taking into consideration the Hon’ble acquittal of the petitioner from the same charges by the Hon’ble court of Special Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Prohibition and Excise at Mahaboobnagar vide judgment dated 02.05.2019.

It is further the case of the petitioner that thereafter the petitioner filed an appeal against the order dated 24.07.2019 before the 3^rd respondent and the same was rejected on 06.11.2019 without assigning any reasons. Subsequently a revision against the order dated 06.11.2019 was filed by the petitioner and the same was rejected by the 4^th respondent vide order dated 27.1.2020.

It is further the case of the petitioner that the petitioner was promoted to the post of AR Head Constable Vide Proceeding dated 3.05.2021, however the batch mates of the petitioner were promoted to the said post on 29.03.2018. Hence, the petitioner was denied his right to notional promotion from

29.03.2018 on which the petitioner’s batch