Retired Bihar judge moves SC over 50 % pension cut for hasty decision in criminal case

The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Bihar government on the plea of ​​a former judicial officer who had his pension cut off following disciplinary proceedings initiated against him just before his retirement on a complaint of hasty decision in a criminal case.

A bench comprising Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice Pankaj Mithal, while hearing the plea, issued a notice to the Bihar government and sought its reply.

The retired judicial officer challenged the decision of the Patna High Court, which dismissed his plea challenging the deduction of pension as a disciplinary order.

The former court official reached retirement age on 31/07/2012, but just before his retirement he was suspended on 27/07/2012 mainly due to a complaint about a hasty decision in a criminal case. After his retirement, disciplinary proceedings were initiated against him. Following a disciplinary hearing, the former Bihar judicial officer was sentenced to 50 percent deduction of pension in November 2017.

The applicant argued in the Supreme Court that the criminal case pending against him, which was the subject of his adjournment just four days before his retirement, was not part of the indictment against him and the said criminal case was belatedly added as a charge exceeding the permissible period of four years under the regulations governing such proceedings.

A former judicial officer in the apex court claimed that the Patna High Court had dismissed all his objections against deduction of pension as a disciplinary order. After hearing the submissions of the former Bihar judicial officer, the apex court issued a notice to the parties, returnable within six weeks.

"Notice of extradition, returnable within six weeks," the apex court said in its order.