The Delhi High Court has ruled that employment at the Border Security Force (BSF) is not a “hop-on and hop-off service” from which its members can leave and come back whenever they wish.
A Bench of Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw and Justice Asha Menon made the remarks while dismissing the plea of an Ex-Deputy Commandant of BSF — who took voluntary retirement but later wanted to rejoin the service in the same capacity as prior to the resignation.
Ex-Deputy Commandant Mandeep Singh had opted for voluntary retirement as his mother was suffering from Parkinson disease since 2008 and was undergoing treatment. While seeking permission for the voluntary retirement, he had also cited that his wife was posted at Amritsar as Judicial Magistrate staying along with her 2-year-old child. At that period, Mr. Singh was posted in Delhi.
Withdrawing resignation
BSF’s counsel argued that no personnel has a right to withdraw the resignation and it is the decision of the Indian Government whether to allow any personnel to withdraw his resignation or not.
The BSF’s counsel said Mr. Singh, in his August 17, 2018, application to the President, did not withdraw his resignation but made a request for being permitted to join after voluntary retirement. The said request of Mr. Singh has already been rejected, the counsel said.
“In our view, tendering and acceptance of resignation from secure employment has an element of finality and irrevocability thereto,” the court said. It added that “the reigns of the country cannot be entrusted to a personnel, who in the past has chosen his own interest over that of the public or the country”.
It said conduct of Ms. Singh, though still having substantial period of deputation with National Security Guard (NSG) left, paid scant regard to the same in the face of difficulties of his wife and small child and his mother “do not indeed show the petitioner [Mr. Singh] to have put the service before self”.
The court further observed that “the personnel tendering resignation also tend to forget that we are a country of scarcities including scarcities of employment opportunities”.
“Here, advertisements inviting application for a few hundred posts elicit applications from lakhs. Though, we are a country of scarcities, we are rich in human resource...Tendering of resignation from employment with the government by one, creates vacancy, for which hundreds if not lakhs await an opportunity,” it said.
