D. P. Wadhwa, J. - (1.) These three appeals are directed against the common judgment dated February 24, 1984 of the Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court (Lucknow Bench) holding that the appellant is an "authority" and an instrumentality of the State and as such amenable to the writ jurisdiction of the High Court and setting aside the dismissal orders passed against the respondents being violative of the Service Rules as applicable to them.
(2.) Respondent-Chandra Bhan Dubey (CA 514/85) was working as a Branch Accountant in the Nakur Branch, District Saharanpur of the appellant. It was alleged that he committed various irregularities and a charge-sheet dated June 27, 1980 was served upon him containing various charges. These included that Dubey locked the Bank premises affecting the very prestige of the Bank as well as of Branch Manager, that he disclosed confidential letter of the Bank to an unauthorised person; that he did not manage properly to keep with him the cash and draft receipt books failure of which facilitated Shri Birendra Kumar Sharma, Assistant Accountant of the Bank (since suspended) to commit embezzlement and in that he conspired with Sharma; and that he derelicted in the discharge of his duties. Dubey was apprised of the evidence proposed to be used in the disciplinary proceedings.
(3.) In the cases of Kanta Prasad Sharma (CA No. 515/85) and Bhaskara Chandra Uppadhyaya (CA No. 516/85) Driver and Branch Accountant of the Bank respectively, charges were that they being the full time employees of the bank participated in the strike which was banned in the Bank by the State Government and thus declared illegal which disrupted the normal working of the Bank; that both of them created an atmosphere of terror along with others and also obstructed other employees of the Bank from working; and thus they instigated them to strike; and that they created indiscipline in the Bank by participating and organising a meeting illegally in the premises of the Bank during office hours without prior permission of the competent authority in which meeting slogans were raised, exciting speeches delivered and abusive words used against the Bank management and they were thus guilty of misconduct; that they caused disreputat-ion of the Bank by issuing pamphlets containing baseless allegations against the higher officials of the Bank; that with the object of organising an unlawful strike they established a "Sangharsh Kosh" and demanded Rs. 10/- from every employee of the Bank for the purpose; and that they organised Employee Joint Action Committee of the Bank without proper registration under the Rules and without prior approval of the competent authority and associated an outsider as convenor in that Committee and thus created disorder and disturbed the peace in the premises of the Bank. Against Kanta Prasad Sharma it was also a charge that he was suspended by order dated June 19, 1981 but he did not hand over the charge formally and by absenting himself in an unauthorised way and further that after his suspension he was attached to Regional Office, Bareilly but he did not join there so far. Similarly, Bhaskara Chandra Uppadhyaya was further charged that when he was suspended on June 19, 1981 and attached with Regional Office, Gorakhpur, he did not join there. The evidence on which the charges were framed and which were to be proposed to be used during the course of disciplinary proceedings were stated in the charge-sheets.;