In Brief
An Intelligence Bureau officer, Pradeep Sharma, was transferred from Jammu to another office within Jammu and subsequently to Amritsar in 1998, but repeatedly refused to join, citing fear of a hostile superior. After multiple warnings and two years of unauthorized absence, he was dismissed through compulsory retirement. The High Court set aside this punishment. The Supreme Court reversed the High Court's order, holding that government servants must comply with transfer orders and that members of uniformed forces cannot absent themselves on frivolous grounds. The Court restored the punishment of compulsory retirement, emphasizing that the disciplinary authority's decision should not be interfered with unless the punishment shocks the conscience of the Court.
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