THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Central Administrative Tribunal has criticised the decision of the Accountant- General for denying commuted leave to a woman employee who was about to retire.
Central Administrative Tribunal member K.George Joseph, in an order issued recently, also directed the AG’s office to regularise the leave of Elsy John, retired supervisor of the AG’s Office.
The Tribunal directed the AG’s Office to disburse the withheld leave encashment, gratuity and salary along with an interest of nine percent per annum from May 1, 2008, till the date of actual payment. The amount should be paid within 15 days of receipt of the copy of the order of the tribunal.
The tribunal also came down heavily on the then Accountant General (A&E) V.Raveendran for denying the leave.
‘’Under the guise of being lenient, the AG is ready to sanction any kind of leave other than commuted leave. There is no justification in denying leave to the applicant and on insisting that she should not take commuted leave. The refusal to sanction commuted leave to the applicant is against the leave rules and is unjust, mala fide and reeks of personal prejudice. It is illegal, inhuman and arbitrary,’’ the Tribunal opined.
‘’Commuted leave is to be granted on the strength of a medical certificate to a Government servant, if there is a reasonable prospect of his returning to duty on its expiry.
Leave cannot be denied at the whims of the sanctioning authority. If it is denied, it is sheer harassment,’’ the Tribunal said.
If the AG had any doubt about the genuineness of commuted leave asked for, he could have got a second opinion at least for the period of leave from May 6 for which the applicant had applied in advance,the Tribunal said.
‘’AG has failed to find any administrative exigency that can justify the denial of commuted leave to the applicant who was on the verge of retirement. The duties entrusted with her were also not so high and important that her absence could have an impact on the administration. She was only one among the many senior accountants in the office and had informed her superior about her intention to go on leave,’’ the Tribunal said.
Elsy John was denied commuted leave and her salary was withheld for the month of April, 2008, and for 11 days in May, 2008.
She was also denied leave encashment for 43 days at her credit.
Though she was designated as supervisor in the office of the AG by virtue of her elevation under accelerated promotion scheme, she was actually entrusted with the duties of one of the many senior accountants.
She had applied for commuted leave from April 1, 2008, for 32 days and again from May 6, 2008, for 11 days, as she could not attend duties owing to illness. The leave application for 32 days, along with medical certificate was submitted only on May 5, as she was bedridden. She later retired on May 31, 2008.
© Copyright 2008 ExpressBuzz
Central Administrative Tribunal member K.George Joseph, in an order issued recently, also directed the AG’s office to regularise the leave of Elsy John, retired supervisor of the AG’s Office.
The Tribunal directed the AG’s Office to disburse the withheld leave encashment, gratuity and salary along with an interest of nine percent per annum from May 1, 2008, till the date of actual payment. The amount should be paid within 15 days of receipt of the copy of the order of the tribunal.
The tribunal also came down heavily on the then Accountant General (A&E) V.Raveendran for denying the leave.
‘’Under the guise of being lenient, the AG is ready to sanction any kind of leave other than commuted leave. There is no justification in denying leave to the applicant and on insisting that she should not take commuted leave. The refusal to sanction commuted leave to the applicant is against the leave rules and is unjust, mala fide and reeks of personal prejudice. It is illegal, inhuman and arbitrary,’’ the Tribunal opined.
‘’Commuted leave is to be granted on the strength of a medical certificate to a Government servant, if there is a reasonable prospect of his returning to duty on its expiry.
Leave cannot be denied at the whims of the sanctioning authority. If it is denied, it is sheer harassment,’’ the Tribunal said.
If the AG had any doubt about the genuineness of commuted leave asked for, he could have got a second opinion at least for the period of leave from May 6 for which the applicant had applied in advance,the Tribunal said.
‘’AG has failed to find any administrative exigency that can justify the denial of commuted leave to the applicant who was on the verge of retirement. The duties entrusted with her were also not so high and important that her absence could have an impact on the administration. She was only one among the many senior accountants in the office and had informed her superior about her intention to go on leave,’’ the Tribunal said.
Elsy John was denied commuted leave and her salary was withheld for the month of April, 2008, and for 11 days in May, 2008.
She was also denied leave encashment for 43 days at her credit.
Though she was designated as supervisor in the office of the AG by virtue of her elevation under accelerated promotion scheme, she was actually entrusted with the duties of one of the many senior accountants.
She had applied for commuted leave from April 1, 2008, for 32 days and again from May 6, 2008, for 11 days, as she could not attend duties owing to illness. The leave application for 32 days, along with medical certificate was submitted only on May 5, as she was bedridden. She later retired on May 31, 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment