Can’t recover old losses from ex-staffer after four years: Punjab and Haryana HC

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that recovery proceedings cannot be initiated against a retired employee for losses caused during service if the charges pertain to over four-year-old incident. The ruling came in response to a petition filed by a retired Ayurvedic Medical Officer after he was made liable to reimburse the “financial loss caused to the state exchequer”.

Citing provisions under Rule 2.2(b) of the Punjab Civil Services Rules, Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi of the high court also set aside the order for recovering over Rs 8.97 lakh. Appearing before the Bench, counsel Manu K Bhandari said the officer had been held liable for alleged financial irregularities that occurred during his tenure in 1996 and 2004-2005.

After hearing detailed arguments and going through the relevant provisions of law, Justice Sethi asserted that recovery under the rules could only be initiated for incidents that occurred within four years of an employee’s retirement. Since the charges against the officer related to over four-year-old incidents, the state’s recovery action was deemed illegal.