Court: Misconduct Dismissals Need Inquiry for Temp Staff

A significant legal victory has been achieved for temporary and daily-wage police employees, establishing that they cannot be dismissed based on misconduct allegations without a proper inquiry. This landmark ruling, concluding a 26-year legal struggle, saw the Punjab and Haryana High Court uphold a lower court's order to reinstate a former special police officer discharged in October 2000.

The court rejected the Punjab government's argument that the officer, Gurjeet Singh, could be discharged without notice as a daily wager. Justice Harkesh Manuja stated that the use of contractual provisions was a 'facade' to conceal a punitive dismissal. The ruling mandates that any allegations of misconduct must be legally established after issuing a show-cause notice and providing an opportunity for a hearing.

Gurjeet Singh, initially recruited as a Special Police Officer (SPO) in August 1994, was later selected as a regular constable in March 2000. His termination in October 2000 stemmed from an FIR registered in January 1997, where he faced charges of voluntarily causing hurt and spent two weeks in judicial custody. Despite his acquittal in January 2001, his termination proceeded, citing the FIR and alleged involvement with a fake medical certificate, bypassing a departmental inquiry.

Singh challenged his termination, and his case progressed through various judicial levels. Crucially, testimony supporting his dismissal was removed from the record due to the deponent's failure to appear for cross-examination. An in-charge of GRP (Crime Cell) admitted during cross-examination that Singh's six-year service record was satisfactory, and no rule permitted termination solely based on an FIR. An appellate court reversed a junior civil judge's dismissal in June 2009, deeming the termination stigmatic and contrary to natural justice, a verdict later challenged by the Punjab government.