S. PARTHASARATHI vs STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

The Supreme Court held that the Inquiring Officer's bias and the violation of natural justice principles rendered the order of compulsory retirement invalid. The Court emphasized that the test for bias is based on a 'reasonable apprehension' from the perspective of a reasonable person aware of the facts, and that decisions can be quashed based on reasonable suspicion without proving actual bias. The inquiry conducted by the Inquiring Officer was deemed improper as he lacked the authority to conduct it after his reversion from Director to Deputy Director, leading to the restoration of the trial court's decree.