Government officials can't remain suspended for over 90 days: Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has held that a government employee's suspension order won't stand beyond 90 days unless the prosecution files a chargesheet within that period. The court clarified that even if a memo of charges is filed within 90 days, suspension can only be extended by a reasoned order.

The top court was extending the rationale of no person being held in detention beyond 90 days if no chargesheet is filed to government employees.

The court said that this was necessary to protect the dignity of the individual that ought to be placed on par with the right to a speedy trial.

A suspended employee has to face insinuations, scorn and derision, even before being formally charged with some misdemeanour, indiscretion or offence, the court noted.

The ruling will end the practice of putting employees on indefinite suspension pending enquiry, with the court frowning on such practices as well as repeated extensions.

These ought to be the exception rather than the norm, the court said.

"If Parliament considered it necessary that a person be released from incarceration after the expiry of 90 days even though accused of commission of the most heinous crimes, a fortiori suspension should not be continued after the expiry of the similar period especially when a memorandum of charges/chargesheet has not been served on the suspended person," the court said.

The court, however, said that the government would be free to transfer the person so accused to any other department to "sever any local or personal contact that he may have and which he may misuse for obstructing the investigation".

A two-judge bench comprising justices Vikramjit Sen and C Nagappan made the ruling while disposing of an appeal filed by Ajay Kumar Choudhary, a defence estate officer suspended since June 15, 2014, for the alleged sale of 4 acres of defence land to private parties in Jammu in 2008-2009.