If there are some inquiries or vigilance clearing pending against an employee, the employer cannot withhold an employee’s voluntary retirement indefinitely, said the Delhi High Court.
Sandeep Gupta served the General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF) as an assistant executive engineer and later as superintending engineer, starting 1995. After almost 30 years of service, Gupta requested voluntary retirement due to his health problems and family commitments. His request, however, was not processed in spite of several reminders, forcing Gupta to file a writ petition.
While Gupta wanted his voluntary retirement to come into effect on the last date of the mandatory notice period, the union insisted that without a vigilance clearance by the legal department, he could not be allowed to retire.
No employee can be prevented from retiring unless they had been suspended or had a charge sheet filed against them. In Gupta’s case, there was no hurdle whatsoever. His request was made in keeping with Rule 56(k) of the Fundamental Rules (“FRs”). Ideally, if his employer had any objection to his retirement, they should have raised it before the mandatory notice period had expired.
The union maintained that Gupta had been a defense witness in a case involving some officer. As a result, Gupta had also ended up with allegations leveled against him, which could lead to a departmental inquiry. In addition, an inquiry had been ordered into irregularities in Gupta’s house rent allowance claims. Therefore, the argument was that his retirement request could not be processed until all these issues were cleared.
The Delhi HC, however, ruled in favour of Gupta pointing out that Rule 56(k) of the FRs allows government employees to retire after serving a three-month notice period, reports Live Law. Also, retirement can only be withheld if the concerned employee is under suspension or is facing a charge sheet, or has been accused of some grave misconduct for which legal proceedings are underway. In Gupta’s case only a vigilance clearance was pending or a potential inquiry, which is not sufficient reason for holding back his voluntary retirement.
Also, the Court highlighted that it was the employer’s duty to let the concerned employee know if their request has been rejected well within the notice period. If that does not happen, the retirement request is considered to be accepted.
