Second ACP is not granted because an enquiry is pending. That has been pending for the last five years. I am posted in the irrigation department. A false complaint was filed by the contractor that I demanded money from him for clearing his bills. Upon his complaint an enquiry was set up by the department. In 2024, I will have completed sixteen years of service and become eligible for the second ACP. Now for the sake of pending enquiry the department has refused to grant that benefit.
Asked from: Uttar Pradesh
The departmental enquiry against you remains pending, and no conclusive determination of punishment can be inferred at this stage. Even if the enquiry ultimately results in a penalty, such punishment would be imposed in 2025 or thereafter. Consequently, it stands as an established fact that until 2024—when you became eligible for the Second Assured Career Progression (ACP)—no punishment had been awarded to you.
It is a settled principle of law that any disciplinary action ordinarily takes effect prospectively from the date of its imposition and cannot be applied retrospectively. Therefore, the department lacks the authority to enforce the proposed punishment with retrospective effect.
In the given circumstances your sixteen-year service record remains unblemished up to the date of your ACP eligibility, therefore, you are legally entitled to the benefits of the Second ACP.
To enforce your right, you should file a writ petition in the High Court under Article 226 of constitution, seeking a mandamus order directing the department to grant you the Second ACP, as no punishment had been imposed on you at the time of eligibility.
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