Rajasthan High Court orders reinstatement of ADO suspended for over a year without chargesheet

Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has quashed the suspension of a Zila Parishad Assistant Development Officer who had been kept out of service for over a year without a chargesheet being served on him, holding that a government employee cannot be kept under suspension for an inordinate period without initiation of disciplinary proceedings.

Justice Rekha Borana observed that once it was admitted that no chargesheet had been served on the petitioner despite more than a year having elapsed since the suspension order, it was crystal clear that no disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against him.

The petitioner, Bharat Bhushan Sharma, posted as Assistant Development Officer with the Zila Parishad, Jaipur, had approached the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution, challenging the order dated Oct 16, 2025 (Annexure-6) by which he was placed under suspension. The respondents included the State of Rajasthan through the Chief Secretary, the Secretary and Commissioner of the Panchayati Raj Department, and senior officers of the Zila Parishad, Jaipur.

Counsel for the petitioner, Pradeep Mathur, submitted that despite more than a year having elapsed since the suspension order, no charge-sheet had been served on the petitioner till date. Counsel for the respondents placed on record a proposed charge-sheet dated Oct 30, 2025, but admitted that it too had not been served on the petitioner.

The Court noted that in view of this admitted position, it was crystal clear that no disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against the petitioner till date. Recording that a government employee cannot be kept under suspension for an inordinate delay without disciplinary proceedings being initiated, the Court relied on the Supreme Court’s decision in Ajay Kumar Choudhary v Union of India & Ors.; 2015 (7) SCC 291, where the Apex Court, dealing with a situation of prolonged suspension without further disciplinary proceedings, had observed and held:

“We, therefore, direct that the currency of a Suspension Order should not extend beyond three months if within this period the Memorandum of Charges/Chargesheet is not served on the delinquent officer/employee; if the Memorandum of Charges/Chargesheet is served a reasoned order must be passed for the extension of the suspension.”

The Court further observed that counsel for the respondents was not in a position to refute this settled position of law.

In view of the above, the Court held that the writ petition deserved to be allowed. The order dated Oct 16, 2025, by which the petitioner had been kept under suspension, was quashed and set aside, and the respondents were directed to reinstate the petitioner within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of the copy of the order. The Court clarified that this would not preclude the respondents from undertaking disciplinary proceedings against the petitioner, in accordance with law. The stay petition and pending applications, if any, were disposed of.

Title: Bharat Bhushan Sharma v State of Rajasthan & Ors.

Case No.: S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 16924/2025

Citation: [2026:RJ-JP:25145]

Counsel for petitioner: Mr. Pradeep Mathur

Counsel for respondent: Mr. Prateex Saxena & Mr. Sunil Purohit for Mr. Kapil Prakash Mathur, AAG