Manohar Lal Vs Commissioner of Police & Ors (Supreme Court of India)
Supreme Court held that dismissal of public servant [police officer] on the basis of presumption without department inquiry under Article 311(2) proviso (b) of the Constitution of India is unsustainable in law. Accordingly, order of dismissal is liable to be quashed.
Facts- The instant appeal is directed against the order dated 02.02.2023 passed by the Division Bench of the High Court of Delhi disposing of the writ petition filed by the appellant questioning the order of dismissal from service dated 18.07.2017 passed by Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi, the Order of Appellate Authority dated 30.07.2018 and the Order dated 29.11.2022 passed by Central Administrative Tribunal, Principal Bench at New Delhi.
The appellant was dismissed from service by the DCP, Delhi vide order dated 18.07.2017, in exercise of the power under clause (b) of second proviso to Article 311(2) of the Constitution of India without conducting departmental inquiry. The reason assigned for not resorting to the normal procedure prescribed under Delhi Police (Punishment and Appeal) Rules, 1980, was that Shri Govind Sharma, Assistant Commissioner of Police in the preliminary enquiry found that it would not be ‘reasonably practicable’ to conduct a regular departmental enquiry on account of reasonable belief of threat, intimidation and inducement to the victim and thereby creating the possibility of tampering of the vital evidence.
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