Chandigarh official gets justice 3 yrs after retirement

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 17

The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Chandigarh, has directed the UT Administration to release death-cum-retirement gratuity (DCRG) to Amin Chand, former executive engineer of the Public Heath Engineering Department, after three years of his retirement with interest within one month.

Amin Chand had approached the CAT after the Engineering Department denied the benefit of gratuity after his retirement in 2017 citing the charges framed against him in an alleged corruption case.

In a petition filed before the CAT, Amin denied the allegations and stated that he had nothing to do with the case. Investigating agencies also gave him a clean chit, but the charges were framed just to harass him without the approval of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).

The CAT pronounced the order after the applicant’s counsel informed it that the Central Vigilance Commission, in a letter dated October 7, 2020, has recommended dropping of charges levelled against the applicant. He demanded that the Administration might be directed to release the withheld DCRG in favour of the applicant in view of the letter.

KK Thakur, counsel appearing for the Central Vigilance Commission, also stated that he had no objection if this application was allowed with a direction to the respondents to release the DCRG amount to the applicant.

After hearing the arguments, the CAT in its order said in case the charges framed against the applicant had been dropped by the respondent department, they should release the DCRG amount to the applicant within a period of one month from the date of receipt of the certified copy of this order. The Administration had also been directed to pay interest on the amount.