Indefinite suspension of govt servant prejudicial to exchequer: SC on Tihar suspensions in Unitech case

Dealing with an application filed by suspended official assistant superintendent of jail Chet Ram Meena for reinstatement, the court directed the Director General of Prisons to take a decision on Meena’s reinstatement within four weeks

New Delhi

The court observed that on the expiry of a six-month period, ordinarily, a government official is entitled to subsistence allowance, calculated at 75% of the pay, unless there is a valid reason to deny the same. (HT Archive/Representative photo)

The Supreme Court on Thursday observed that indefinite suspension of a government servant was prejudicial to the state exchequer, as they remain on the payroll without doing work, and recalled its October 2021 order suspending 32 Tihar Jail officials for allegedly extending extraordinary benefits to former Unitech promoters Ajay Chandra and Sanjay Chandra when they were lodged as undertrials for allegedly siphoning off money from homebuyers.

Dealing with an application filed by one of the suspended jail officials, assistant superintendent of jail Chet Ram Meena, for reinstatement, the bench of justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh directed the Director General of Prisons to take a decision on Meena’s reinstatement within four weeks.

The bench said, “It seems to us that the direction contained in paragraph 2 of our order of October 6, 2021,if allowed to operate indefinitely will be prejudicial to the state exchequer. You don’t keep a person suspended beyond six months. It becomes a bonanza for such officials as they get salary and leave without getting to do any work.”

The court observed that on the expiry of a six-month period, ordinarily, a government official is entitled to subsistence allowance, calculated at 75% of the pay, unless there is a valid reason to deny the same.

Additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Tihar Prisons, informed the court that of the 32 who were suspended, four had retired and the service of two on contract was dispensed with.

She said that pursuant to the October 2021 order, criminal proceedings were initiated under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. In October 2024, a chargesheet was filed and most of the suspended officials were named. Simultaneously, a departmental inquiry was also initiated against the suspended officials, she said.

Senior advocate P Chidambaram, appearing for the suspended official along with advocate Akshat Gupta, told the court that he was not averse to an enquiry, but contended that “a peculiar situation confronts Meena” as he is not yet charge-sheeted and his prayer for reinstatement was not being considered due to the suspension order.

Meena was posted as the assistant superintendent of Tihar Jail No. 7 when the Chandra brothers were lodged, from August 7 to 17, 2020. On August 31, 2020, Meena was transferred to Mandoli jail and was suspended within a week of the court’s order, with the same being extended from time to time.

In its order, the bench said, “We see that conclusion of departmental enquiry will take time. The criminal investigation is not likely to reach a logical conclusion in a short time.” It clarified that an order by the competent authority should not impact the ongoing trial and also, that the inquiry should proceed as per law.

The October 2021 order was passed on a communication from the Enforcement Directorate to the then Commissioner of Police, Rakesh Asthana, on August 16, 2021, highlighting how the Chandra brothers bribed officials to propagate criminal activities from jail. The ED suspected the role of jail officials in helping the former Unitech directors get mobile phone access.

The court shifted the brothers to separate jails and Mumbai and directed the suspension of 32 jail officials on a report filed by Asthana on September 28, 2021. The Asthana report also highlighted 23 actionable points that required immediate attention, which included the installation of security apparatus, intelligence, improved surveillance, training to jail staff, and promoting good conduct among prisoners, to curb such incidents in future.