SRINAGAR, Sept 4: The High Court has set aside the compulsory retirement of a Member of Higher Judicial Service with direction deemed to have been retired on actual age of retirement.
The petitioner-Muzaffar Iqbal Qureshi was compulsorily retired by the Government on January 1, 2014 while he was working as District Judge.
His grievance was that the process undertaken with regard to his compulsory retirement right from its very inception to its culmination is beyond the scope of Rules of the J&K Higher Judicial Service Rules, 2009 and challenged the same on various grounds.
The Division Bench of Justice Rajnesh Oswal and Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal after examining the record, found that there were no allegations of corruption or otherwise against the petitioner-Qureshi and his integrity was never doubtful.
Court said that a person of doubtful integrity can be shown the door at any time but after following the due process of law but so far as the case of the petitioner is concerned, this Court is of the considered view that the authority concerned has not followed the mandate of Rules while directing the premature retirement of the petitioner.
The court said that the action of the respondents in retiring the petitioner just two months before his attaining the age of superannuation on the ground of loss of continued utility in service can’t sustain the test of law and the same is liable to be set aside.
Court ordered that the writ petition is allowed, and the Government Order No. 08-LD(A) of 2014 dated 01.01.2014 issued by the respondent No. 1 as well as communication No. 3271/GS dated 11.06.2013 of the respondent No. 2, are set aside & as a necessary corollary, the petitioner shall be deemed to have been retired on attaining the age of 60 years
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