SC rejects former trial judge’s plea against compulsory retirement

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea of a former additional sessions judge seeking quashing of a decision of the full court of the Punjab and Haryana high court to recommend his “compulsory retirement”, saying there were “multiple transactions showing deposits and withdrawals of substantial amounts of money”.

The apex court judgement came on a plea of Rajinder Goel, the then additional sessions judge in Haryana, seeking setting aside of the recommendation of December 14, 2020, of the full court of the Punjab and Haryana high court recommending his compulsory retirement.

The former judge had also challenged the consequential order of January 5, 2021, of the Haryana governor accepting the recommendation alleging that the full court took the punitive action despite the fact that the two reports of the vigilance/disciplinary committee had exonerated him.

“Considering the facts and circumstances on record and in view of the record indicating that there were multiple transactions showing deposits and withdrawals of substantial amounts of money, it cannot be said that the full court was not justified in taking the view that it did. We do not find any reason to take a different view in the matter,” said a bench of justices Uday Umesh Lalit and Ajay Rastogi in the judgement.

The apex court, which had advised the former judge to approach the high court with his grievances first, later did not accede to the request saying now it has already reserved the judgement after hearing the parties.

Goel, who had joined the Haryana Judicial Services in 1996, was promoted in 2008 to the Haryana Superior Judicial Services and later certain complaints, including the one by the Bar Association, were made against him.