MUHAMMAD ARSHAD vs DEPUTY DISTRICT FOOD, MULTAN Ss — 2025 SCMR 2071 SUPREME-COURT

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MUHAMMAD ARSHAD VS DEPUTY DISTRICT FOOD, MULTAN Ss. 13(4)(a), 13(4)(b), 13(5) & 13(6)---Constitution of Pakistan, Arts. 10A & 212(3)---Authoritative dominance in disciplinary proceedings---Scope---Natural justice---Violation of right of fair trial---Non-fulfillment of procedural formalities---In post remand joint inquiry proceedings allegations against the petitioner remained unproved, however, minor penalty was recommended by inquiry officer due to slackness---Competent authority disagreed with such findings at the final order stage and imposed major penalty without prior assigning any reason for such disagreement at the review stage giving opportunity to the petitioner to show cause thereof---Petitioner remained unsuccessful in departmental appeal and appeal before Service Tribunal---Validity---Scenarios where the inquiry is deemed not to have been conducted per the legal framework, the Competent Authority, under Section 13(6) of PEEDA, has the responsibility to remand the inquiry back to the Inquiry Officer or Inquiry Committee---This may involve rectifying identified lapses or procedural formalities, or it may necessitate ordering a de novo inquiry to ensure compliance with legal standards---Such structured and detailed approach is vital in safeguarding the rights of the accused and ensuring that disciplinary proceedings are conducted with fairness and in adherence to the law---Dissection of the PEEDA, particularly its Section 13, shows that the legislation does not promote a culture of despotic use of authority within disciplinary proceedings, rather in its preference, it seeks to strike a balance between the imperative of safeguarding employee rights and the necessity of maintaining an efficient disciplinary framework within the service---Such objective has been sought to be achieved by instituting a system of accountability rooted in the principles of fairness, sound reasoning and justifiable decision-making---Law envisages that every step undertaken in disciplinary proceedings must align with the foundational principles of natural justice and procedural fairness and any deviation from these principles risks undermining the validity of the final order, thereby calling into question the integrity and legitimacy of the entire disciplinary process---In the absence of clearly articulated grounds or specific reasons within the show-cause notice, the petitioner was positioned precariously and at a significant disadvantage---Such omission transformed the notice into a mere formality, stripped of meaningful content, cultivating an unwholesome culture of authority while inflicting considerable prejudice on the petitioner and leading to substantial injustice---Competent authority in its final order, under Section 13(5) of the PEEDA, tried to fill in the lacuna in the proceedings and provided its reasons based on which it differed with the inquiry report and imposed a major penalty of forfeiture of one-year regular service---Such post-hoc reasoning could not rectify the initial shortcomings---Punishment order drawn under Section 13(5) of the PEEDA was an outcome of excessive authoritative dominance in the disciplinary proceedings---Such overreach undermined the very essence of fair treatment and compromised the petitioner's fundamental rights---Such a disregard for due process and procedural impropriety rendered the entire process flawed, devoid of any legal validity and could not be upheld in a legal framework that protects the right to a fair trial---Civil petition was converted into appeal and allowed and resultantly all impugned orders were set aside, with a direction to start proceedings afresh from the stage when inquiry report was received and order was passed thereon.

MUHAMMAD ARSHAD vs DEPUTY DISTRICT FOOD, MULTAN Ss — 2025 SCMR 2071 SUPREME-COURT

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