The Allahabad High Court while dismissing the petition said that whoever comes to the court should come with the disclosure of all the facts, even if they are against him.
A Single Bench of Justice Jaspreet Singh passed this order while hearing a petition filed by Devendra Singh Maurya.
By means of the petition, the petitioner has prayed for the following reliefs:-
“(I) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of certiorari calling for records and quash the impugned suspension order dated 30.08.2022 passed by the respondent No 3 passed by the respondent No 3 and consequential proceedings passed thereon.
(II) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of mandamus direct the respondent No 3 to release the substance allowance in favour of the petitioner and further the consequential proceedings initiated in pursuance of the report submitted by the respondent No 4 and in that pursuant the notice was issued on 28.12.2022 within the time stipulated by the Court.
(III) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondent No 2 to comply the order dated 15th June, 2022 issued by the Apar Police Maha Nideshak Mukhalay Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow within stipulated period.”
The Court noted that on 07.02.2023, a Coordinate Bench of the Court had required the standing counsel to seek instructions and to apprise the Court what steps had been taken on the basis of Disciplinary Enquiry Report dated 08.11.2022 as well as to indicate as to why the subsistence allowance has not been paid to the petitioner.
Krishna Mishra, counsel for the petitioner was specifically required to address the Court as to whether the petitioner had indicated that there were any other enquiry pending against the petitioner as well as the fact to explain the Paragraphs-6 to 9 of the petition in context with the annexures which have been appended.
Counsel for the petitioner attempted to explain, but thereafter could not take his submission to any logical conclusion and he also expressed his regrets regarding incorrect pleadings and annexures in support there.
The Court found is that in the pleadings as contained in Paragraphs-6 to 9 an impression is given to the Court as if the petitioner was put under suspension on 30.08.2022 without any preliminary enquiry and even otherwise the Enquiry Officer had submitted its report on 08.11.2022 but without passing any final order, a second notice has been issued on 25.11.2022 and it is in the aforesaid backdrop that it was sought to be projected that the petitioner is being victimized at the behest of the respondents-authorities and there was no justification for keeping the petitioner under suspension.
Paragraph-6 to 9 of the petition are being following:-
“(6) That in the complaint submitted against the respondent No 4 the preliminary enquiry was initiated the respondent No 4 due to malafide intention he has sent the incorrect report and on the basis of that report the Police Commissioner, Kanpur Nagar written a letter on 30.08 .2022 and in pursuance of the letter dated 30.08.2022 against the petitioner the order of suspension was passed on 30.08.2022. A copy of the suspension order dated 30.08.2022 is being filed herewith and is marked as Annexure No 2 to the petition .
(7) That the respondent No 3 without conducting the preliminary enquiry against the petitioner and passed the suspension order dated 30.08.2022 on the allegations the petitioner was not completed the work assigned to him within 70 days.
(8) That after the suspension order the disciplinary enquiry has been conducted by the Enquiry Officer and submitted a report on 08th November, 2022. A copy of the enquiry report dated 08th November, 2022 is being filed herewith and is marked as Annexure No 3 to the petition.
(9) That after the enquiry report dated 08th November, 2022, the respondent No 2 issued a show cause notice on 24th November, 2022, A copy of the show cause notice dated 24th November, 2022 is being filed herewith and is marked as Annexure No 4 to the petition.”
The impugned suspension order which is in respect of the act of not performing the duties by withholding the service book of an employee namely Jaswant Singh for about 70 days and odd.
The Enquiry Report which has been annexed of which reliance has been placed in Paragraph-8 of the petition and on perusal of the same, it indicates that it relates to some other charges against the petitioner.
Even the show-cause notice dated 24.11.2022 relates to some other charge and it does not relate to the charge for which the petitioner was put under suspension on 30.08.2022.
The Court said that,
Apparently, the petitioner has not approached the Court with clean hands and has suppressed the material facts including that a number of enquiries are pending against the petitioner which is now evident from the personal affidavit filed by the Commissioner of Police, Kanpur Nagar and ably pointed out by S.K Dubey, Additional Chief Standing Counsel for the State.
It is now well settled that any person who approaches the Court of Law must disclose full facts even if they are against him.
It was necessary for the petitioner to have disclosed the enquires which were pending against him and the manner in which the pleadings have been made it indicates that an attempt has been made to give an incorrect impression by filing incorrect annexures in content of the pleadings in Paragraphs-6 to 9 of the petition.
The Court also found that the earlier order which was passed by the Court on 22.02.2023 whereby the Additional Legal Remembrancer was required to file his affidavit was only on account of the misrepresentation of the petitioner.
Taking note of the aforesaid, the Court observed that the petitioner is not entitled to any relief and the Court is not inclined to interfere with the suspension order.
The Court dismissed the petition on a cost of Rs 25,000/- to be deposited by the petitioner in the High Court Legal Aid Services within a period of four weeks, failing which the amount shall be recovered from the petitioner by the Commissioner of Police, Kanpur Nagar and deposit it with the above-mentioned authority.