Setting aside compulsory retirement of a postal department officer for procedural lapses in discharge of duties, the Supreme Court on Thursday said that anyone can make mistakes and the consequences of mistakes should not be unduly harsh.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hrishikesh Roy said considering the findings of procedural lapses, the appropriate punishment could only be a minor penalty and not a major penalty.
The court upheld the Central Administrative Tribunal's decision terming the punishment of compulsory retirement against R Balasubrahmanyam as unduly harsh and shockingly disproportionate as none of the bribery charges against him had been found sustainable.
The court directed that the order of the disciplinary authority was set aside with a direction to impose an appropriate minor penalty within eight weeks.
"The nature of charges found against the officer can hardly be one to call for a major penalty, keeping in mind that there was no bribery charge," the court added
Published 04 March 2021, 16:19 IST
