Syed FIDA HUSSAIN KAZMI vs INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF POLICE, PUNJAB and others
This matter comes before the Supreme Court of Pakistan through a petition converted into an appeal, wherein the petitioner challenged the judgments upholding his dismissal from service. The core legal question concerns whether the penalty of dismissal from service was proportionate to the nature of the petitioner's established misconduct, given the peculiar compassionate circumstances of the case, including the complete loss of his eyesight and having children of marriageable age. The Court held that the extreme penalty of dismissal did not commensurate with the nature of the misconduct under the specific circumstances. Consequently, the appeal was partly allowed, and the penalty of dismissal from service was modified to compulsory retirement from service. The key principle laid down is that appellate and constitutional forums may review and modify departmental penalties in service matters where the punishment imposed is disproportionate to the proved misconduct, taking humanitarian factors into consideration.
- Whether the Supreme Court can convert the penalty of dismissal from service into compulsory retirement based on compassionate grounds?
- Does the penalty of dismissal from service have to be proportionate to the nature of the misconduct?
- Can a service tribunal's order regarding the quantum of departmental punishment be modified by the Supreme Court?
ORDER
' The learned counsel for the petitioner on the last date of hearing, frankly stated that he did not press the petition on merits and sought indulgence of this Court for conversion of the extreme penalty of dismissal into compulsory retirement from service. It was also brought to our notice that in the meantime the petitioner had completely lost his eye-sight and had children of marriageable age.
2. Even today the learned counsel for the petitioner has repeated the same request. The learned Assistant Advocate-General, Punjab as well as the Inspector (Legal), Sahiwal have also been heard. We have carefully gone through the orders passed by the departmental authority as well as by the Tribunal. In our view, the extreme penalty of dismissal of the petitioner from service did not commensurate with the nature of his misconduct in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case.
3. Therefore, this petition is converted into appeal and the same is partly allowed. Consequently, the impugned judgment, dated 15-8-2002 passed by the Punjab Service Tribunal in Appeal No,641 of 2001 as well as the order, dated 12-10-2000 passed by the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Multan Range, are modified to the extent that the penalty of dismissal of the petitioner from service is converted into compulsory retirement from service. However, there shall be no order as to costs.