A woman who was appointed by the Rajasthan government in 2000, was removed from her job two years later, in 2002, when she was arrested in a cheating case (under Section 420 of the IPC). Later, in 2011, the criminal court cleared her of all charges.
The said employee had challenged her dismissal in the Labour Court, which in 2005 ruled that her termination was unfair and ordered that she be reinstated in her job on the same terms as before. However, the State government had appealed against this decision, but in 2024 a single judge of the High Court agreed with the Labour Court. The judge said she should get her job back and receive all benefits, minus the back wages for the period she was out of work.
The State then filed another appeal before a division bench, arguing that merely because she was acquitted in the criminal case doesn’t automatically mean she should be reinstated; that reinstatement wasn’t a right. The employee’s lawyers argued that since her dismissal was based only on the pending criminal case, once she was acquitted, the reason for her termination no longer existed.
As per LiveLaw, after reviewing the matter, the division bench agreed with the earlier decisions. They found no legal error and upheld the woman’s reinstatement.
