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Proceedings Against Delinquent Employee Are Abated On His Death Since No One Else Can Effectively Defend Allegations: Rajasthan High Court
Nupur Agrawal
17 Feb 2025 4:00 AM
Rajasthan High Court has ruled that a delinquent employee is the only person who can properly defend himself/herself in departmental proceedings initiated against him/her by the State, and following the death of such delinquent employee during the proceedings, the inquiry cannot continue and the proceedings are abated. The bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand was hearing a petition...
Rajasthan High Court has ruled that a delinquent employee is the only person who can properly defend himself/herself in departmental proceedings initiated against him/her by the State, and following the death of such delinquent employee during the proceedings, the inquiry cannot continue and the proceedings are abated.
The bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand was hearing a petition against the charge sheet filed against an employee, as well as the consequential proceedings. The Court was apprised of the fact that the delinquent employee had passed away during the pendency of the proceedings.
In light of the changed circumstances, the Court held that the department could not proceed with the charge sheet and that the petition stood abated.
“Once allegations are made against an employee who is no longer alive, there is no one who can effectively defend those allegations on his behalf…Unless the employee is given a proper opportunity to defend himself, no proceedings can continue to establish the allegations levelled against him. In this case, after the death of the employee, it is impossible to provide an opportunity to defend the allegations, as there is no one who can adequately do so. Therefore, the inquiry cannot continue after the death of the employee in question.”
It was held that in light of the death of the employee, the proceedings arising out of the charge sheets issued against him came to an end automatically.
Accordingly, the petition was disposed of, and the State was directed to release the dues of the deceased employee to his legal representatives.
Title: Girdhari Karmachandani v Punjab National Bank & Ors.
Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Raj) 65