Delhi High Court Upholds CISF Officer's Dismissal For 10-Month Absence, Says Can't Abandon Duty When Facing Uncomfortable Situation

The Delhi High Court has observed that a person joining a uniformed service cannot walk away from his duty when he is faced with an uncomfortable situation.

“Ups and downs in service are a part of life. A person who has joined a uniformed service has to be ready to meet these exigencies. He cannot just walk away from his duty when placed in an uncomfortable position, or faced with a situation which is not palatable to him,” a division bench comprising Justice C Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla said.

The Court dismissed a plea filed by a Sub Inspector in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) who was removed from his service in 2011 after a chargesheet was issued against him alleging unauthorised absence. He did not participate in the inquiry proceedings.

Rejecting the plea, the Bench said that it could not come to the aid of the officer as he remained away from service for more than ten months, without any justification.

“It cannot be said, in the facts of the present case, that the petitioner was at all justified in remaining away from duty from 5 July 2010 till 6 May 2011, even if, one were to ignore the period from 6 May 2011 till September 2011. The petitioner remained away for more than ten months, without any justification whatsoever,” the Court said.

It added that the non-cooperative attitude of the officer was also manifest from the fact that he never chose to present himself in the inquiry proceedings following the chargesheet.

“We are of the opinion that the present case does not fall within that exalted category of cases in which the punishment is shockingly disproportionate to the conscience of the Court, so as to justify interference. In these circumstances, we are of the opinion that no case is made out to grant the relief sought in the petition,” the Court said.

Title: JAI BHAGWAN SANGWAN v. UOI & ANR

Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Del) 849

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