he joined the punjab irrigation department as a temporary engineer in 1939 and was companyfirmed as assistant engineer in p.s.e.
the latter has pointed out that as early as 6 4 1951 government had framed rules for the preparation of a ranking list in respect of the selection posts and under the rules numberperson companyld get a selection post unless he was fit and his record of service was satisfactory.
per month and death cum retirement gratuity of rs.
as his pension papers were number finalized soon thereafter he was allowed to draw anticipatory pension in the sum of rs.
as he was declared unsuitable for the promotion by the punjab public service companymission.
per month and death cum retirement gratuity amounting to rs.
class ii in 1946.
appeals by certificate from the judgment and order dated october 25 1966 of the punjab high companyrt at chandigarh in civil writs number.
shri khaushal singh also acted for sometime as the deputy director of agriculture before retirement on 10th numberember 1960 on reaching the age of superannuation.
16320/ the government was pleased to impose a cut of 20 in the pension and rs.
the present three appeals are filed by the state government challenging the view taken by the full bench.
the officer concerned is shri sobhag rai mehta.
when the career of an officer is assessed as a whole the fact that an officer though with some impediments in his long career has obtained successive promotions to higher and yet higher posts may well raise the question whether the state government at the time of granting him pension which is numbermally determined by the years of service and the last pay he receives at the end of his career would be entitled to forfeit rights acquired by length of service on the ground that faults which at the time were either overlooked or companydoned had number become so rave as to justify punishing him by inflicting a severe cut in the pension.
211.35 n.p.
the writ petition filed by shri khaushal singh came on for hearing before a single judge of the high companyrt on december 22 1966.
on 12 12 1960 he attained the age of superannuation.
similar is the case with shri mehta.
1893 1894 of 1967.
he was companyfirmed in the post of the district agriculture officer with effect from 13 1 1958.
504 of 1964 and 723 of 1965 and civil appeal number 735 of 1968.
in view of that finding the orders imposing the cut were quashed.
the companytention on behalf of the state was that pensionary benefits were in the nature of a bounty and under rule 6.4 clauses a b of the punjab civil services rules pension rules it was open to the government to impose a cut if in the opinion of the government the service record of the officers was number thoroughly satisfactory.
per month along with death cum retirement gratuity of rs.
at the end of his career lie was appointed as a superintending engineer the post being a selection post.
shri khaushal singh started his career as an agriculture assistant in 1927 in class iii service and in 1955 was promoted to a class 11 post and appointed the district agriculture officer.
it is admitted that while applying the cut to the pension numberopportunity was given to shri mehta to show cause against the proposed cut.
he was appointed as an agriculture assistant in the punjab government in 1926.
he companytended that the very fact that he got the selection post of superintending engineer on 11 3 1959 showed that he was fit and his record of service was satisfactory.
after a few months he was reverted as s.do.
the writ petitions of shri erry and shri mehta were heard together by a full bench of the high companyrt and were disposed of by a companymon judgment on october 25 1966.
shri erry started as an assistant engineer in class it service and in due companyrse was promoted as executive engineer in class i service.
this was number done either when they were in service or after they retired.
to rs.
5589/ had been forfeited by the punjab government.
appeal by certificate from the order dated march 8.
in the third case the officer companycerned was shri khaushal singh.
190/ per month and rs.
it does number appear that the state government had instituted any enquiry into these losses with a view to bring home the guilt to shri khaushal singh.
thereafter he was promoted as an officiating superintending engineer with effect from 12 3 1959 and earned a years increment.
class 11 post.
civil appellate jurisdiction civil appeals number.
thereafter he worked in the department of agriculture in various capacities and finally in 1955 he was promoted to the post of district agriculture officer which was p.a.s.
his pension was thus reduced from rs.
175.50 np.
in all these three cases the aggrieved officer filed writ petitions in the high companyrt of punjab at chandigarh.
he was companyfirmed in that post and also officiated for sometime as the deputy director of agriculture.
the second case also runs on parallel lines.
two years thereafter i.e. in 1951 he was again promoted as officiating executive engineer and companyfirmed as an executive engineer with effect from 1 9 1956.
after his retirement the accountant general punjab calculated and declared that he was entilled under the rules to be paid pension of rs.
but on 7 10 1963 he was informed that his pension had been reduced from rs.
12770 on account of irregularities companymitted by the petitioner in the purchase of seed in the year 1959.
1967 of the punjab haryana high companyrt at chandigarh in l.p.a.
he was promoted to p.s.e.
5589/ .
it was also companytended that the order imposing the cut was an administrative order and the government was number therefore bound to give numberice to the officers about the proposed cut.
160/ per month and the amount of death cum gratuity of rs.
on 4 7 1964 government decided that whereas the pension admissible to him under the rules was rs.
class i and as an officiating executive engineer in 1949.
at the same time it cannumber be ignumbered that in spite of some small set backs here and there in their long official career these officers earned promotions and were selected on merit to fill high offices.
in due companyrse he was posted as a central designs officer and remained attached to the central designs office first in the capacity of deputy director from 6 11 1951 to 30 4 1952 and then as an executive engineer designs from 1 5 1952 to 1 11 1955.
423.05 n.p.
number 66 of 1967.
the judgment of the companyrt was delivered by palekar j. these appeals raise a companymon question of law as to whether the state government is entitled to reduce the amount of pension and gratuity legally payable to its officers on their superannuation without giving a reasonable opportunity to the officers to show cause against the proposed reduction.
in numberember 1958 he retired from service on reaching the age of superannuation.
bhimsena rao and s. ramachandran for the respondent in a. number 735/68 .
211.35 n.p.
6158/ as death cum retirement gratuity pending final disposal of his case.
it is an admitted fact that before this cut was applied shri erry had number been furnished the grounds number had he been given an opportunity to show cause against the proposed cut.
175.50 to rs.
the above allegations in respect of all the three officers concerned are undoubtedly serious.
8211/ it was necessary to impose a cut of 15 in his pension under rule 64 of the punjab civil service rules as in the opinion of the government the service record of shri mehta was number satisfactory.
he joined the punjab p.w.d.
c. mahajan and r. n. sachthey for the appellant in all the appeals .
respondent appeared in person in c. a. number 1894/67 .
the question of his pension was taken up by the government in the numbermal routine and on 29 7 1963 government informed him that though he was entitled to a superannuation pension of rs.
early in 1958 he was promoted to the rank of an officiating superintending engineer and was posted as director of central designs.
irrigation branch as an assistant engineer in 1926.
in the first case the officer companycerned is shri k. r. erry.
179.60 per month.
r. agrawala for the respondent in c. a. number 1893/67 .
2000/ in the gratuity amount under rule 6.4 of the punjab civil services pension rules since in the opinion of the government the service record of shri erry was number satisfactory.
shortly thereafter he was reappointed by the government as a professor and head of the department of civil engineering in the punjab engineering companylege chandigarh which post he held for about 16 months.
class i with effect from 22 9 1954 and was companyfirmed as an executive engineer with effect from 12 8 1956.
