During the Appellant’s tenure in the respondent bank, The District collector (sixth respondent herein), without conducting any enquiry, cancelled the community certificate granted to the Appellant. The Appellant then, to seek his post-retirement benefits filed WP No 19006 of 2013 in the High Court
Also Read: https://newslaw.in/case-type/criminal/procedural-rigidity-and-quashing-of-detention-order/
, however the same was disposed off vide order dated 04.07.2014, and the first respondent was directed to complete the enquiry within a period of eight weeks. The High Court, vide order dated 19.12.2017 allowed the same, and remanded the matter back to the scrutiny committee whilst quashing the show cause notice and the enquiry report.
Prabakaran, Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the Appellant vehemently argued that as per the directions of the High Court in order dated 19.12.2017, the Appellant was to be given opportunity due to cross-examine the witnesses, and copies of all documents relied on by the Respondents was to be furnished to the Appellant, however, the same was not done.
Joseph Aristotle, AOR, appearing on behalf of the respondents argued that notice was duly served on the Appellant, and it was the Appellant who did not show up in the proceedings. 20-6-1979, the right to property no longer remained a fundamental right, it was still a constitutional right, as provided in Article 300-A of the Constitution.
Also Read: https://newslaw.in/case-type/civil/land-resumption-and-annulment-setting-aside-impugned-orders/
At the very beginning, we would like to state that this Court is appalled at the treatment given to the Appellant by the Respondents herein.
After serving the Respondent bank for 38 years, the Appellant, two days before his superannuation received his cessation order without there being any proper enquiry. The genuine candidates are also denied admission to educational institutions or appointments to office or posts under a State for want of social status certificate. In case of any delay in finalising the proceedings, and in the meanwhile the last date for admission into an educational institution or appointment to an officer post, is getting expired, the candidate be admitted by the Principal or such other authority (1994) 6 SCC 241 competent in that behalf or appointed on the basis of the social status certificate already issued or an affidavit duly sworn by the parent/guardian/candidate before the competent officer or non- official and such admission or appointment should be only provisional, subject to the result of the inquiry by the Scrutiny Committee. of the educational institution responsible for making the admission or the appointing authority, should cancel the admission/appointment without any further notice to the candidate and debar the candidate for further study or continue in office in a post.”
It has been explicitly stated by this Court that the exercise of verification of community certificate must be completed expeditiously.
Subsequent to this, a fresh enquiry was conducted, and another report was submitted again, however even this report suffers from the same fallacy as the previous report because even here, the Appellant has not been afforded the opportunity to be heard. The Appellant, in proceedings where the genuineness of his belonging to a community is under question, must have a right to be heard, and must be given the right to cross-examine the witnesses, for the nature of the proceedings are not just a question pertaining his employment, but also something that strikes at the core of his being, i.e., his identity. The Constitution of India guarantees certain rights to people from Scheduled Tribe communities on grounds of historical injustice, and for the translation of such rights from paper to real life, the community certificate in most cases becomes an essential document.
In the absence of the discharge of such burden of proof, this Court must presume the community certificate of the Appellant to be genuine. (ANIRUDDHA BOSE)……………………..,J.
Case Title: R. SUNDARAM Vs. THE TAMIL NADU STATE LEVEL SCRUTINY COMMITTEE (2023 INSC 249)
Case Number: C.A. No.-001770-001771 / 2023
