In a significant ruling, the Telangana High Court has quashed the dismissal of a state government employee from the school education department, ordering his immediate reinstatement with full back wages. The court strongly criticized the government's decision to enhance a penalty years after the employee had already accepted an earlier punishment in a case alleging the use of a fake degree certificate.
The Long Legal Battle Over a Decades-Old Allegation
The case revolves around Ramchander, now 54 years old. His troubles began in 2002 when he was promoted from the post of junior stenographer to senior assistant. In 2007, authorities levelled allegations against him, claiming he had submitted a fake degree certificate to secure that promotion and obtain advance salary increments.
A criminal court, however, acquitted him of charges of forgery and cheating in 2010, granting him the "benefit of doubt" after a detailed analysis of the evidence. Despite this acquittal, the department continued with its internal disciplinary inquiry.
From Demotion to Dismissal: The Government's Shift
In 2017, the internal inquiry reached a conclusion. The department found Ramchander partially guilty and imposed a punishment: he was demoted back to his original rank of junior stenographer, and the excess salary paid to him was ordered to be recovered. Ramchander accepted this demotion and resumed his duties as a junior stenographer, seemingly closing the chapter.
However, the legal battle was unexpectedly revived in late 2019. The state government decided that the 2017 punishment was too lenient. Ignoring a suggestion from the Public Service Commission to merely revert him to a lower post and bar promotions for seven years, the government took a harsher step. In April 2023, it issued orders dismissing Ramchander from service entirely.
Court's Stern Rebuke and Final Order
Challenging this enhanced penalty, Ramchander approached the Telangana High Court. His argument was straightforward: the government could not legally enhance the penalty years after he had accepted and served the earlier punishment.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohiuddin agreed. The bench dismissed the state government's appeal, holding that enhancing the punishment to dismissal was not legally sound. The court emphasized a crucial point: since the employee had accepted the 2017 demotion, the matter should have ended there.
The judges also noted that the criminal court had already conducted a detailed analysis and found that the prosecution failed to prove the charges. The High Court's final order was clear: Ramchander must be reinstated as a junior stenographer and granted full back pay from the date of his dismissal in April 2023 until his actual reinstatement.
This ruling underscores the importance of finality in disciplinary proceedings and places a check on administrative authorities seeking to revisit closed cases after considerable delay.
