Governor withdraws order to retire Judge compulsorily

Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 22

Just about a month after the Supreme Court upheld a Punjab and Haryana High Court order of reinstating Additional District and Sessions Judge Sanjeev Jindal, the Haryana Governor withdrew the order of compulsorily retiring him.

The decision came more than six years after the order was passed. He had now been posted as Principal Judge, Sonepat Family Court. The appeal against the state and Jindal had been filed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Allowing Jindal’s plea filed through Puneet Bali, the High Court Bench of Justice AB Chaudhari and Justice Kuldip Singh, in its order dated August 29 last year, directed the petitioner’s reinstatement on his original post, from where he was compulsorily retired by an order dated August 13, 2012.

Bali had assailed the impugned action of the respondents in punishing him for alleged misconduct of granting regular bail to an accused. An anonymous complaint had been received by the High Court, alleging that the petitioner had passed the order for oblique motives.

The Registrar (Vigilance) had submitted in his report that the order granting bail appeared to be mala fide, as a result of which an explanation was sought. Bali averred that it was a judicial order and the accused was acquitted by the same Judge who gave preliminary inquiry report as Registrar (Vigilance).

Bali added that perusal of the inquiry report clearly showed that the inquiry officer acted as appellate authority over the order granting regular bail and gave reasons as to why the findings of the fact recorded in the order of granting bail were not correct.

“But the same were correct and that is why the accused was finally acquitted,” Bali contended. The Bench asserted the inquiry officer did not consider the circumstances to find out whether judicial discretion exercised by the petitioner to grant regular bail to a woman was justified.

“According to us, whether the order is justified or not cannot be the subject matter of a finding by inquiry officer, unless the same is found to have been made with mala fide intention, for extraneous consideration of for corruption. There is neither any finding nor evidence to that effect,” the Bench added.

Justice for Judge 

• Additional District and Sessions Judge Sanjeev Jindal punished for granting regular bail to an accused Anonymous complaint received by High Court, alleging that the order was passed for oblique motives
• Registrar (Vigilance) submits in report that the order on bail appears to be mala fide; explanation sought 
• Compulsory retirement order withdrawn about a month after Supreme Court upholds reinstatement order