New Delhi, June 16 (IANS) The Delhi High Court has upheld the reinstatement of a Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) conductor who was dismissed more than three decades ago on allegations of collecting fares without issuing tickets, ruling that the disciplinary inquiry against him was vitiated by violations of natural justice and that the charge of misconduct was not proved through reliable evidence.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia dismissed the DTC’s appeal against an earlier order affirming a labour court award in favour of Ram Avtar Sharma, a conductor who was removed from service in 1994 following a vigilance inspection conducted in April 1992.

The labour court had directed Sharma’s reinstatement with continuity of service for seniority, pension, gratuity and other consequential benefits, though without back wages.

The order was subsequently upheld by a single judge of the Delhi High Court and has now been affirmed by the division bench.

The case stemmed from a vigilance check during which 10 passengers were allegedly found travelling without tickets despite having paid fares to the conductor.

The DTC relied on statements of squad members and the recovery of unpunched tickets to establish misconduct. However, the Delhi High Court found significant deficiencies in both the evidence and the inquiry process.

“In such circumstances, and in the absence of verification of the cash in the respondent’s possession, the DTC cannot be said to have discharged its burden of proving the charge of ‘misconduct’ by reliable and consistent evidence,” the CJ Upadhyaya-led Bench observed.

It added that passenger statements suffered from material inconsistencies and lacked crucial details regarding travel routes and fares paid. It further said that no statement had been recorded from one group of passengers allegedly travelling without tickets.

Referring to an earlier Division Bench ruling in DTC v. Shyam Singh, the Delhi High Court reiterated that failure to verify the cash held by a conductor at the time of inspection weakens allegations of fare misappropriation.

Apart from evidentiary shortcomings, the CJ Upadhyaya-led Bench held that the disciplinary proceedings were marred by multiple breaches of natural justice. It found that relevant documents, including the logbook and passenger statements, were not supplied to the employee and that he was not given a proper opportunity to defend himself.

“Second, the statements of passengers were not supplied to the Respondent; he was merely permitted to inspect the same, which cannot be regarded as an adequate substitute for the furnishing of copies,” the judgment said.

The Delhi High Court further faulted the DTC for relying on Sharma’s past service record while imposing punishment without giving him an opportunity to explain or rebut those entries.

“The reliance upon a person’s past record for the purpose of imposing a more severe punishment, without granting such person an opportunity to address the same, constitutes a settled infraction of the principles of natural justice,” the bench observed.

Upholding the findings of the labour court and its single-judge Bench, the Delhi High Court said the inquiry proceedings stood vitiated, and the DTC had failed to establish the charge of misconduct through cogent and consistent evidence.

“We are of the considered view that the impugned order correctly appreciates both the factual matrix and the governing legal principles,” the judgment said.

While sustaining reinstatement with continuity of service and consequential benefits, the Delhi High Court endorsed the denial of back wages in view of Sharma’s adverse past service record, which included earlier warnings and penalties for ticketing-related lapses.

–IANS

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