Disciplinary authority approval for charge-sheet issuance is mandatory; initiation approval alone does not cure jurisdictional defect.

Under Rule 14(3) of the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965, the disciplinary authority must itself draw up or cause the charge-sheet to be drawn up, so approval limited to initiation of major penalty proceedings is not enough to validate issuance of the charge memo. Because the record showed no approval by the disciplinary authority for issuing the charge-sheet itself, the memo was treated as issued without jurisdiction and the challenge to the Tribunal's view failed. The writ petition therefore did not succeed, and the finding that the charge-sheet was invalid for want of proper approval remained undisturbed.

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Issues: Whether a charge sheet in a disciplinary proceeding had to be approved by the disciplinary authority before issuance, and whether the charge sheet was liable to be quashed for want of such approval.

Analysis: Rule 14(3) of the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965 contemplates that the disciplinary authority shall draw up or cause to be drawn up the charge-sheet, which means the authority may itself prepare it or direct a subordinate to do so. The record showed approval only for initiating major penalty proceedings, but no approval from the disciplinary authority for issuing the charge memo itself. The approval required for initiation could not be treated as approval for issuance of the charge-sheet. In the absence of that approval, the charge-sheet suffered from a jurisdictional defect.

Conclusion: The charge sheet was held to have been issued without jurisdiction, and the challenge to the Tribunal's order failed.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition did not succeed, and the Tribunal's view that the charge-sheet was invalid for want of disciplinary authority approval was left undisturbed.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the governing rule requires the disciplinary authority to draw up or cause a charge-sheet to be drawn up, approval merely to initiate disciplinary proceedings is not enough unless approval for issuing the charge-sheet itself is shown.

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