1000. BITS ON DISCIPLINE -153
641. Statement of Imputations
The statement of imputation should give a full, and precise recitation of the specific and relevant acts of commission or omission. A vague accusation that the Government servant was in the habit of doing certain acts in the past is not sufficient. It should be precise and factual. In particular, in cases of any misconduct/misbehaviour, it should mention the conduct/behaviour expected or the rule violated.
642. List of Witnesses
A number of witnesses are usually examined during the course of the preliminary inquiry and their statements are recorded. The list of such witnesses should be carefully checked and only those witnesses who will be able to give positive evidence to substantiate the allegations should be included in the statement for production during the oral inquiry. Formal witnesses to produce documents only need not be mentioned in the list of witnesses.
643. List of Documents
The documents containing evidence in support of the allegations which are proposed to be listed for production. The documents containing evidence in support of the charges/imputation which are proposed to be listed should be carefully scrutinized. No charge or imputation should be left to be supported by either listed documents or listed witnesses.
644. Delivery of Article of Charge
The disciplinary authority will deliver or cause to be delivered a copy of the articles of charge, the statement of the imputations of misconduct or misbehaviour and a list of documents and witnesses by which each charge is proposed to be sustained to the Government servant in person if he is on duty and his acknowledgement taken or by registered post, acknowledgement due. The acknowledgement of the Government servant should be added to the case.
If the Government servant evades acceptance of the articles of charge and/or refuses to accept the registered cover containing the articles of charge, the article of charge will be deemed to have been duly delivered to him as refusal of a registered letter is normally tantamount to proper service of its contents.
645. CVC Guidelines on Drafting of Charge-Sheet
(Central Vigilance Commission's Circular No. 3(v)/99/8 dt. 5. 10.1999)
Inadequate skill in drafting the charge-sheet is one of the reasons which help the charged officials to get away with lapses/misconduct committed by them. Many cases fail before the Courts of Law just because of the defective framing of charge-sheets. It has been observed by the Commission that the charge-sheets are sometimes framed in a very general way and the existing practice with regard to framing of charges and imputations vary widely. Sometimes the charge itself is framed in a very general way, only pointing out that the official concerned has acted in an unbecoming manner or has shown lack of devotion to duty or has acted without integrity. The real issues, in such circumstances, are to be found in the statement of imputations. It has also been observed by the Commission that the organisations/Ministries etc. while framing the charge-sheets list serious irregularities/charges in the imputations but do not mention the same in the articles of charge. Many a times the charges are not framed in accordance with the advice given by the Commission, thereby diluting the central issues.
2. Rule 14(3)(i) of the CCS (CCA) Rules stipulates that "the substance of the imputations of misconduct or misbehaviour into distinct articles of charge" should be drawn up by the Disciplinary Authority whenever it is proposed to hold an enquiry against a Government servant. This would mean that no charge can be proper or complete without including therein elements of the main content of the allegations/ imputations. Therefore, the spirit of all Conduct, Discipline & Appeal Rules imply that there should be a specific finding on each allegation made against the officer. At the end, the 10 must then apply his mind to come to a conclusion as to whether the charge as a whole has been proved wholly, partially or not at all.
3. It has to be understood that the statement of imputations/ allegations annexed are supplementary/supportive material to the chargesheet; they are details of facts/evidence to support the charges made, and should contain names of witnesses/documents in support of the charges. That is, the statement of imputations is to make the basis of the charge, allegation-wise, precise and specific and should include details of what exactly each witness/document is going to prove regarding every charge. Each charge should also have a separate statement of imputations of misbehaviour/misconduct. The common failing of listing out one long statement of misconduct/misbehaviour ought to be avoided.
4. The Commission has also issued instructions earlier which are reproduced in Para 14.1 to 14.3 of Chapter X of Vigilance Manual Part 1 stipulating that the articles of charge should be framed with great care. Broad guidelines as to how the articles of charge should be framed have also been indicated therein. Similarly, the common mistakes which have been noticed by the Commission in framing the charge-sheet have also been incorporated in Para 12.1.3 of the special Chapter on Vigilance Management in Banks and Para 20.1.3 in the Special Chapter in PSEs'. These are reproduced below:
Special care has to be taken while drafting a charge-sheet. A charge of lack of devotion to duty or integrity or unbecoming conduct should be clearly spelt out and summarised in the Articles of charge. It should be remembered that ultimately the IO would be required to give his specific findings only on the Articles as they appear in the charge-sheet. The Courts have struck down charge-sheets on account of the charges framed being general or vague (S.K. Raheman Vs. State of Orissa 60 CLT 419.) If the charge is that the employee acted out of an ulterior motive that motive must be specified (Uttar Pradesh Vs. Salig Ram AIR 1960 All 543). Equally importantly, while drawing a charge sheet, special care should be taken in the use of language to ensure that the guilt of the charged official is not pre-judged or pronounced upon in categorical terms in advance (Meena Jahan Vs. Deputy Director, Tourism 1974 2 SLR 466 Cal). However, the statement merely of a hypothetical or tentative conclusion of guilt in the charge, will not vitiate the charge-sheet (Dinabandhu Rath Vs. State of Orissa AIR 1960 Orissa 26 cf. Also Powari Tea Estate Vs. Barkataki (M.K.) 1965 Lab LJ 102)".
5. Notwithstanding the extant instructions/guidelines many organisations continue to make avoidable mistakes while framing the charge-sheets. Therefore, it is reiterated that the extant instructions on the subject as stated in the aforesaid paras may be followed carefully while drafting the charge-sheet, in order to avoid subsequent difficulties. The CVOs of the organisations/Ministries etc. should ensure that these instructions are implemented scrupulously.
6. In addition as already summarised above, an 10 is required to give his finding in respect of each article of charge and reasons thereof. As the articles of charge are definite and distinct substance of the statement of imputations of misconduct or misbehaviour, the findings on each articles of charge have to be inter-alia based on statement of imputations. Therefore, the Inquiry Officers are required to record their findings in respect of each allegation framed in support of an article of charge in order to ensure that inquiry reports do not suffer due to deficiencies,
7. All CVOs may ensure strict compliance of the above instructions. CVOs are also instructed to carry out an exercise on their own in respect of cases where the Commission has tendered its first stage advice to ensure that the articles of charge and statement of imputations are in conformity with the advice. The CVOs of Ministries can also check charge sheets in a random manner during their visits/inspections.
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