GAUHATI HIGH COURT ISSUES ORDER ON THE MANAGING DIRECTOR, FOOD CORPORATION OF INDIA AND ORS. V/S SHRI PRADEEP KUMAR

GUWAHATI, India, April 19 -- Gauhati High Court issued the following order on March 19:

1. All the 3(three) appeals have been heard together and are being disposed off by this common judgment.

2. We have heard Mr. P.K. Roy, learned Senior Advocate for the appellant/Food Corporation of India (FCI) and Mr. G.K. Gupta, learned Advocate for the respondents in all the 3(three) appeals.

3. The appellant/FCI has questioned 3(three) separate judgments, all dated 18.12.2024, passed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in WP(C) No.2921/2023; WP(C) No.4486/2023 and WP(C) No.4606/2023, whereby the fine slapped on the respondents herein have been interfered with and set aside with a direction that the respondents shall not be penalized so far as their promotional avenues are concerned.

The further direction in the judgments impugned is that the appellant/FCI must resort to "sealed cover" procedure with respect to promotion of the respondents to the higher posts.

4. During audit, huge quantities of food grains were found short in the storage sheds of the appellant/FCI of which the respondents were the In-charge. The Disciplinary Authority found that the respondents were to be blamed for the unusual losses which were directly attributable to the negligence of the respondents. Hence, all the respondents were separately slapped with a fine, which, according to the appellant/FCI, was proportionate to their guilt.

5. It appears from the records of all the 3(three) appeals that initially the appellant/FCI wanted to initiate Departmental Proceeding for major penalties against the respondents for the huge losses which had occurred in the storage depots of which they were In-charge, but on the basis of the explanations offered by the respondents, it was decided that they be proceeded against under Regulation 60 of the Food Corporation of India (Staff) Regulations, 1971 (hereinafter to be referred as the "Regulation of 1971"), which provides for minor penalties.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=A9S7c5LDIsB6RXaCf816x1sXTN377dsaxICYZLfop0LZx2SlPvTNx1S%2FJwsv3YJR&caseno=WA/297/2025&cCode=1&cino=GAHC010054772025&state_code=6&appFlag=)

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