In Brief
An army officer failed to report for duty for seven years after taking nine days of leave and was discharged from service following a fair departmental inquiry. Four years later, he appealed claiming mental unfitness and produced a medical certificate. The High Court found the discharge excessive and substituted it with compulsory retirement. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, holding that the medical certificate, obtained belatedly through an intermediary and lacking contemporaneous treatment records, was insufficient to challenge a discharge imposed after a fair inquiry. The Court emphasized that disciplinary action based on fair procedure should not be interfered with without substantial supporting evidence.
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