Overview
- Justice Harpreet Singh Brar on November 7 set aside three 2017 charge sheets issued to former Inspector Grade‑II Suresh Jindal by the Punjab State Civil Supplies Corporation.
- Jindal had been dismissed on October 31, 2013 following his conviction under the Prevention of Corruption Act, which the court said severed the master‑servant relationship.
- The bench held that once dismissal takes effect, the employer lacks jurisdiction to initiate or continue departmental proceedings because the authority depends on an ongoing employment nexus.
- The court relied on Indian Bank v. Mahaveer Khariwal (2021) and SBI v. Navin Kumar Sinha (2024) to affirm that post‑service enquiries require explicit statutory authorization.
- The corporation’s reliance on Rule 2.2(b) permitting action to withhold pension failed because the petitioner was not pension‑eligible, and a claim that the dismissal order was sub judice did not restore disciplinary power.