ASHUTOSH GOEL vs STATE BANK OF INDIA AND ORS

Judgment text excerpt

$~ * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI % Date of Decision: 28th February, 2025 + W.P.(C) 8652/2017 and CM APPL. 35560/2017 ASHUTOSH GOEL .....Petitioner Through: Mrs. Prem Lata Bansal, Senior Advocate with Mr. Shivang Bansal and Mr. Praveen Jain, Advocates. versus STATE BANK OF INDIA AND ORS .....Respondents Through: Mr. S.L. Gupta, Advocate. CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE JYOTI SINGH JUDGEMENT JYOTI SINGH, J. 1. By this writ petition, Petitioner seeks quashing of order dated 26.07.2014 passed by the Appointing Authority imposing penalty of ‘reduction to a lower stage in the time scale of pay by two stages for a period of two years, with further direction that officer will not earn increments to pay during the period of such reduction and on the expiry of such period, the reduction will have the effect of postponing the future increments of his pay’ as also order dated 03.09.2015 passed by Appellate Committee upholding the penalty. Writ of mandamus is sought to Respondent No. 1/State Bank of India (‘SBI’) to reinstate the Petitioner at the appropriate stage in the time scale of pay commensurate with the number of years of service put by him with all consequential benefits. 2. Case of the Petitioner as set up in the writ petition is that Petitioner joined SBI on 21.12.1981 as Probationary Officer and was promoted four Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed By:KAMAL KUMAR W.P.(C) 8652/2017 Page 1 of 39 Signing Date:06.03.2025 19:06:58 times in his career to MMGS-II w.e.f. 01.08.1987, MMGS-III w.e.f. 01.08.1993, SMGS-IV w.e.f. 01.11.1998 and SMGS-V w.e.f. 29.07.2004. Between February, 1998 to October, 2001, Petitioner worked in SBI Card Division, a joint venture of SBI and GE Capital of USA on deputation as a Project Team Member. Sales team led by the Petitioner was con