In Brief
A CRPF constable was dismissed from service after leaving his camp without permission, consuming liquor in public, and quarrelling with civilians. The High Court had set aside the dismissal as disproportionate without formulating the requisite substantial question of law. The Supreme Court held that Section 11(1) of the CRPF Act, 1949 empowers dismissal as a punishment in departmental inquiries. The Court also clarified that the High Court erred procedurally and substantively by not considering the binding precedent in Ghulam Mohd. Bhat. The Court found the dismissal justified and proportionate, given the respondent's serious breach of discipline while serving in a sensitive naxalite area, and allowed the appeal.
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