STATE TIMES NEWS
SRINAGAR: Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal, Judge High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, Srinagar today dismissed the petition filed by dismissed Bank Employee Muneer Ahmed Poswal.
According to case Muneer Ahmed Poswal was engaged in 1985 and later in the year 1991 regularised as Table Boy in Ellaquai Dehati Bank. The petitioner was alleged for resorting to parallel banking methodology of his own by taking advantage of his reputation. Muneer Ahmed started making huge transactions which came to light and after investigation he was dismissed from service.
Counsel for the petitioner Sr Advocate A.H Naik submitted that the petitioner was employed as Table Boy and he rendered an unblemished service to the respondent bank.
He said that his client was not assigned any duty relating to cash transactions that he has been alleged for misappropriating money.
He also said that while dismissing him from service no proper inquiry was conducted and he was not given a reasonable opportunity to defend himself.
Counsel for the respondent Altaf Haqani submitted that the present petition is not maintainable and is liable to be dismissed in the light of the fact that the petitioner has an alternate and efficacious remedy available under section 49 of the Regulations known as Ellaquai Dehati Bank (Officers and Employees) Service Regulations 2010. He said that the petitioner after having availed the remedy of filing appeal has subsequently withdrawn the same and thereby relinquished and abandoned his statuary right to avail the efficacious remedy and after withdrawing it, writ petition filed by him is not maintainable.
Haqani further submitted that the petitioner after taking advantage of his reputation resorted to parallel banking methodology by receiving and depositing against fake receipts from the customers and the petitioner was paying such deposits to the customers against withdrawals/cheques without routing through the respondent bank. He said that in one of the complaint regarding non-deposit of Rs 500, the activities of the petitioner got surfaced who on being confronted, deposited an amount of Rs 1,54,400 leaving back a huge amount of Rs 8,44,900, yet to be accounted for. After inquiry an FIR bearing No 09/2013 date4d 25-2-2013 was registered in Police Station D,H Pora.
He further said that the procedure as envisaged under law was followed while conducting inquiry and subsequently dismissal orders were issued after finding him guilty of the charge.
Justice Nargal after hearing both the sides and going through the findings of the inquiring authority report held that it is manifestly clear that all the charges leveled against the petitioner have been established. The court held that the petitioner has betrayed the trust and confidence of the bank by resorting to a parallel banking by receipt of deposits from customers against fake receipts and repay such deposits against withdrawals/cheques without routing through the bank and making fake entries in the pass books, the charge against the petitioner stood proved by way of a detailed inquiry. The court further held that the petitioner on being confronted with the complaints raised, deposited a huge amount of Rs 1,54,400 up to 10-1-2013 thus leaving a substantial amount of Rs 8,44,900 yet to be accounted for.
The claim and allegation of the bank stood proved once the bank have recovered the aforesaid vouchers from the residence of the petitioner.
Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal said that in view of the aforesaid backdrop the punishment of dismissal imposed by the disciplinary authority by no stretch of imagination can be construed as disproportionate to the gravity of allegations leveled against the petitioner, which stood proved and accordingly, I uphold the punishment imposed by the disciplinary authority as he has betrayed the trust and confidence reposed in him by the local customers and the petitioner had transgressed the scope of his duties as a peon and caused a serious dent to the reputation of Bank.
Justice further said that in the light of what has been discussed hereinabove coupled with the settled position the present writ petition is dismissed alongwith connected applications.
