AI Drafter 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1992 (12) TMI 222
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....ivision Clerks by process of direct recruitment in the year 1963. So far the appellant P. Gangireddy is concerned, he had been appointed initially as a Lower Division Clerk. They were working as Auditors in the year 1975. Departmental proceedings were initiated against them, for having withdrawn amounts in an illegal manner in connection with Leave Travel Concession. On 30th January, 1976, final orders were passed in the aforesaid proceedings, imposing the penalty of reduction in rank, by reverting them from the post of Auditors to the posts of Lower Division Clerks. 3. Mr. Ganesh, the learned Counsel appearing for appellants, submitted that the disciplinary proceedings, as well as the final orders of punishment against the appellants, h....
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.... State Government to make any Rule prescribing that even the proceeding against any delinquent officer shall be initiated by an officer not subordinate to the appointing authority. Any such Rule shall not be inconsistent with Article 311 of the Constitution because it will amount to providing an additional safeguard or protection to the holder of a civil post. But in absence of any such Rule, this right or guarantee does not flow from Article 311 of the Constitution. It need not be pointed out that initiation of a departmental proceeding per se does not visit the officer concerned with any evil consequences, and the farmers of the Constitution did not consider it necessary to guarantee even that to holders of civil posts under the Union of ....
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.... appear that Rule 13 of the Central Civil Services (Classification Control and Appeal) Rules, which was under consideration specifically provided:- 13. Authority to institute proceedings- (1) The President or any other authority empowered by him by general or special order may- (a) institute disciplinary proceedings against any Government servant; Although Article 311 of the Constitution does not speak as to who shall initiate the disciplinary proceedings but, as already stated above, that can be provided and prescribed by the Rules. But if no Rules have been framed, saying as to who shall initiate the departmental proceedings, then on basis of Article 311 of the Constitution it cannot be urged that it is only the appointing aut....
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.... suggests, means reduction from a higher to a lower rank or post. But whether in this process an officer can be reduced from a higher rank or a post to a rank to which he never belonged and to a post which he never held? It the power to reduce an officer by way of punishment to a rank which was never held by such officer is conceded, then a person directly appointed as Upper Division Clerk cannot only be reverted to the post of Lower Division Clerk, but even to the post of a Peon; an Engineer to the post of a Fitter, a Head-Master of a School to the post of an Accountant or Clerk in the said School. As such even while imposing the punishment of reduction in rank, the order must have nexus with the post held by the delinquent officer concern....
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....reasonable to assume that the rule making authority did not intend to clothe the disciplinary authority with the power which would produce such anomalous and unreasonable situations. The contrary view taken by the High Courts in the several decisions referred to earlier cannot be taken to have laid down the principle correctly. We are in respectful agreement with the aforesaid view. 10. So far the facts of the present case is concerned a very anomalous situation has arisen. The two appellants as already stated above had been appointed by process of direct recruitment to the posts of Upper Division Clerk which posts have been re-designated as Auditor, Admittedly, they did not hold at any stage the posts of Lower Division Clerk. In this....