INDER DEV GAUR Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this petition under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (hereinafter referred to as 'the Code' Inder Dev Gaur seeks the quashing of FIR 228 dated 2.8.1987, Police Station Ambala Cantt under section 52 of the Indian Post Office Act, 1898.

(2.) BRIEF facts of the case are that the petitioner Inder Dev Gaur is a postman working in General Post Office, Ambala. He was assigned beat No. 14. On 10.7.1987, 132 postal articles including letters, book packets, postcards and inland cards etc. were entrusted to, him by the Delivery Assistant of the office of Post Master GPO Ambala for delivery to the addressees. Later in the day, one Itbari Lal, Office Fresh, Central Telegraph Office, Ambala Cantt. came to the office of Post Master, GPO at 10.20 a.m. and handed over one brown packet to the Post Master saying that while on his way to his office, someone handed over to him the said packet near the office of fire Brigade, telling that the packet contained postal articles and it was found lying on the road and he handed it over to the Post Master. The Post Master arranged to have the said postal articles delivered to the addressees and sent report to the Station House Officer on the basis of which the present case was registered on 2.8.1987. The case is still under investigation and challan has not been put in Court.

(3.) THE case of the petitioner is that Sh. M.R. Sachdeva was posted as Senior Post Master, Incharge of General Post Office, Ambala Cantt in 1987. The petitioner as a postman serving in the said post office was an active member of the Bhartiya Postal Employees Union, Postman and Class IV, Branch Ambala Cantt, affiliated to the All India Postal Employees Union and in the year 1987 he was elected as Secretary of the said Union. In his capacity as Secretary of the Union, he wrote a letter on 20.6.1987 to Shri M. R. Sachdeva, Senior Post Master, complaining about certain acts of favouritism shown by the Deputy Post Master regarding his own son Surinder Kumar, postman at the expense of other and requesting the Senior Post Master to intervene in the matter and remove the grievances. A copy of the letter was forwarded to Mrs. Manjula Prashar, Director Postal Services, Haryana, at Ambala, with a request to set the matter right. Copy of the letter is Annexure P-1. Endorsement made to Mrs. Manjula Prashar contained allegations against Sh. Munshi Ram Sachdeva, Senior Post Master, Ambala GPO besides the Deputy Post Master. It was said that they had insulted the workers and had misbehaved with them when they were sitting on dharna on 10.6. 1987 in a peaceful manner. It was also stated that ultimately leave of a postman for the said date was refused after withholding the same over-night. The point is that there were direct allegations made by the petitioner as Secretary of the Union against Mr. Sachdeva.