LexRAJ KUMAR versus UNION OF INDIA
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A RAJ KUMAR v. UNION OF INDIA April 18, 1968 857 B [J. C. SHAH, V. RAMASWAMI AND G. K. MITTER, JJ.J c D E F G H Public Servan:-Letters of resignation-Resignation accepted by appro- priate authority-Acceptance not communicated to public servant-With· drawa/ of resignation by public servant-Effect. By letters dated 21st August 1964 and 30th August 1964 the appellant, submitted his resignation from the Indian Administrative Service and re- quested the State Government in which he was serving to forward his re- signation to the Government of India. On 31st October 1964, the Gov- ernment of India accepted the appellant's resignation and intimated accept- ance to the State Government. On 27th November; the appellant wrote letter.; both to the State Government and Government of India withdraw· ing his resignation but, on 29th March 1965, the State Government passed an order accepting the appellant"s resignation and directing the appellant to hand over char!!". The appellant filed a writ petition in . the High Court for quashing th.e orders o'f the State Government and the Government of India. The peti- tion was dismissed. In appeal to this Court, it was contended that : ( 1) So long as the acceptance of the resignation was not communicated to him, the appellant could withdraw his resignation; and (2) the order.; accepting the resigna- tion amounted to dismissal and were therefore violative of Art. 311 Of the Comtitution. HELD: (1) When a public servant has invited by his letter of resig- nation the determination of his employment, his service normally stands terminated frorD the date on which the ·letter of resignation is accepted by the appropriate authority and, in the absence of any Jaw or statutory rule governing the conditions elf. his service, to the C:ontrary, it will not he open to the public servant to withdraw hi< resignation after it is accepted by the appropriate authority. Undue delay, in intimating to the public servant concerned the action taken on the letter of resignation, may justify an inference that the resignat;on had not been accepted. [860 F-H] In the present ease, on the plain terms of the resignation letter.; of the aopellant the- resignation became effective as soon as it was accepted bv the aoprooriate authority. No rule has been framed under Art. 309 of the ~nstitution, nor is there any other rule having statutorv force which requ1rei, that tfor an order acceptin!l the resi~ation to be effective it must be. communicated to the oerson submitting his resignation. The circular rehed. upon by the appellant, according to which resignation becomes elfecbve when it is accepted and the officer is relieved of bis dutiea, mere- ly !"'nt'!ins instructions to be followed and has no statutory force. The resignation was accepted within a short time of its receipt by the Govern- ment of India and the delay of the State Government in implementing the order w.S not inordinate. [860 A-D, HJ .· Siate of Puniab v, Amar Sin~h Hnrl~a. A.l.R'. 0 1966 S.C. 1313. held inapplicahl~. · · j 858 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1968] 3 s.c.R. (2) The orders were neither orders of dismissal nor of termination of service for any misconduct. (861 B-C] C1vIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 2429 of 1966. Appeal from the judgment and order dated May 28, 1966 of the Punjab High Court (Circuit Bench) Delhi in Civil Writ No. 170.D of 1965. S. V. Gupte, Sardar Bahadur, Vishnu B. Saharya and Yogindra Kusha/an, for the appellant. R. H. Dhebar, for respondent No. I. A. K. Sen and K. Baldev Mehta, for respondent No. 2. The Judgment of the Court was delivered by Shah, J. The appellant belonged to the Indian Administrative Service and was in August 1964 posted as Collector & District Magistrate, Kota. On August 21, 1964, he addressed a letter to the Chief Minister, Rajasthan, setting out several grievances and finally stated-"In conclusion I would only request that the Gov- ernment may do me the kindness of accepting my resignation from the service which I am submitting separately as I am convinced that it would be impossible to continue in such an atmosphere without being humiliated from time to time". He also addressed a letter dated August 30, 1964, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Rajasthan submitting his resignation "from the Indian Ad- ministrative Service for early acceptance", and requested that it may be forwarded to the Government of India
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