- (1.) This judgment shall dispose of CWP Nos.10042 & 4327 of 2013, involving common questions of law and facts. However, to dictate orders, facts have been taken from CWP No.10042 of 2013 titled D.K.Kaushal Vs. Punjab State Warehousing Corporation & another.
(2.) Challenge in the present writ petition is to the chargesheet issued on 02.12.2009 (Annexure P3/1) to the petitioner by the respondent-Corporation on the ground that under sub-clause (ii) of sub-rule (2) of Rule 2.2 (b) of Punjab Civil Services Rules, Volume II (for short, the 'Rules'), the Corporation could not initiate disciplinary action against the petitioner based on the events which had already happened, 4 years prior to the institution of enquiry.
(3.) The pleaded case of the petitioner is that he retired from service on 30.11.2006 as Additional District Manager of the District Corporation where he had joined as Technical Assistant on 14.08.1974. The petitioner had been initially chargesheeted on 20.03.2008 on similar allegations whereby the charge was for the period pertaining to 1995 and 1997. This Court in CWP No.3312 of 2009, vide order dated 20.01.2010 (Annexure P2), had allowed the said writ petition in favour of the petitioner in view of the bar provided under the rules that initiation of enquiry in the event which had taken place 4 years before issuance of the chargesheet, was liable to be quashed. Similarly, in the present case also, the chargesheet dated 02.12.2009 (Annexure P3/1) was issued which pertained to less storage gain pertaining to the various periods ranging from 1999 onwards till 2002-03 and the incident was dated 17.12.2002.;