Chandigarh, August 19
In less than a week after work was withdrawn from 39 PCS judicial officers, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has reportedly recommended their termination from service to the Punjab Government. The termination of 18 others awaiting posting orders has also been reportedly recommended.
Though the authorities are tight-lipped about the recommendations, highly placed sources in the High Court confirmed that a letter in this regard has already been addressed to Punjab’s Chief Secretary.
The officers were appointed during the tenure of Punjab Public Service Commission’s suspended chairman Ravinder Pal Singh Sidhu. Sources claimed that the officers were appointed between 1999 and 2001.
They also claimed that the earlier decision to withdraw judicial work from these officers was taken on August 12 during a full court meeting attended by the Chief Justice, Mr Arun B. Saharya, and other judges of the High Court. They added that the decision was taken on the basis of recommendations made by a committee specially constituted to look into the matter.
They further added that the committee, comprising the Chief Justice and certain other Judges, had recommended the withdrawal of work after going through the answer sheets and other relevant documents placed before it. Sources said the documents pertaining to 18 other judicial officers, awaiting posting, were also studied and it was decided during the August 12 meeting not to issue posting orders to them.
Work was also withdrawn from three High Court Judges. Their names had reportedly figured in the confessional statements of Sidhu’s alleged touts.
Soon after the issue regarding their alleged involvement was raised by the advocates, the Chief Justice had initiated a fact-finding inquiry into their alleged roles and had taken the assistance of the then Punjab’s Additional Director-General of Police (Intelligence), Mr A.P. Bhatnagar, and Inspector General of Vigilance Bureau, Mr Chandershekhar.
Speculation regarding the withdrawal of work from these Judges and other judicial officers has been on since quite some time. In several meetings held on the High Court premises, the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association had time and again laid emphasis on the need for the withdrawal of work and subsequent action against them.
