Served 17 years, but sacked for taking leftover tea and biscuits: Jharkhand HC reinstates govt peon, calling the punishment 'disproportionate'

A peon in Bokaro who lost his job over a handful of tea leaves and a few biscuits has finally won his fight to get it back, four years, one dismissed petition, and one appeal later. The Jharkhand High Court has ordered the Bokaro District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) to reinstate Ranjeet Kumar Himanshu, ruling that sacking a 17-year employee over such a trivial matter was excessive and unjust.

A Show-Cause Notice That Named Nothing

Himanshu joined the DRDA as a contractual peon in 2005. Nearly 17 years later, in March 2022, he was handed a show-cause notice accusing him of walking off with "some material" from the office for personal use. The notice never spelled out what that material actually was.

His explanation didn't satisfy the authorities, and by May 2022, he was out of a job. He challenged the termination in court, but a single-judge bench dismissed his plea this January. Undeterred, he took the matter to a larger bench.

The Truth Comes Out: Leftover Tea and a Few Biscuits

It was only during the hearing that the mystery "material" was clarified. Himanshu's lawyer told the court the items in question were nothing more than leftover tea powder and some biscuits lying around the office — and that Himanshu had returned them once the notice was served.

"As Vague As Vagueness Can Be"

A Division Bench of Chief Justice M S Sonak and Justice Rajesh Shankar didn't hold back in its criticism of the original notice, describing it as "as vague as vagueness can be." The judges held that such vagueness violated basic principles of natural justice, an employee cannot be expected to defend himself against a charge that isn't clearly stated.

The bench also pointed out that the termination order gave no reasons of its own, ignored Himanshu's response to the notice entirely, and made no mention of his nearly two decades of service or what the loss of income would mean for his family.

Even taking the allegation at face value, the court said, sacking him over it was "grossly disproportionate" and "shocks the conscience," calling it nothing short of "injustice brimming with insensitivity."

Judges also noted that Himanshu had no prior history of taking office material, and several former Deputy Development Commissioners had actually issued certificates commending his work. None of that seemed to have factored into the decision to fire him.

Reinstated, With Half Pay as Compensation

The court has ordered DRDA Bokaro to take Himanshu back by July 1, along with 50 per cent of his pending back wages, to be cleared by July 31. The Deputy Commissioner of Bokaro has also been told to file compliance affidavits confirming both the reinstatement and the payment.

Interestingly, the bench chose not to award full back wages, observing that losing out on the other half of his dues was punishment enough for the original lapse.

A Family That Struggled for Four Years

For Himanshu, the legal victory comes after a long financial ordeal. Advocate Krishna Prajapati, who represented him, said this was the first time in his client's long career that any such allegation had come up.

Prajapati laid out just how modest Himanshu's earnings had always been, starting at a monthly salary of just Rs 1,600 when he joined, and only Rs 9,950 by the time he was let go. That income supported a household of six: his wife, three daughters, and his younger sister.

"The family has been under severe financial distress ever since he was removed from service," Prajapati said.