VIGILANCE MANUAL VOLUME III - AP Online

DECISION - 266
565
initial charges were adjudicated upon. The Tribunal did not find any
infirmity in the fresh charge-sheets issued to the applicant.
(265)
Plea of guilty
In a plea of guilty, admission must be clear and unequivocal.
Udaivir Singh vs. Union of India,
1987(1) SLR CAT DEL 213
The plaintiff was a Binder in Government of India Press at
Faridabad and the charge against him was that he appeared in the
Binding section and in the Assistant Manager (Tech)’s room in a state
of full intoxication and created indiscipline by shouting loudly. In reply
to the charges, he explained that he was unwell and that his condition
did not improve when he took some tablets and that he took a few
drops of brandy given by a known villager on his advice. He added
that if anything happened, it was out of inadvertance and not deliberate
and expressed regret and begged to be excused. The statement
was construed by the disciplinary authority as an admission of the
guilt and without further inquiry the charges were held as proved and
the penalty of compulsory retirement was imposed. His appeal was
dismissed by the appellate authority.
The Central Administrative Tribunal, Delhi held that admission
regarding taking a few drops of brandy as a medicine and denying
the fact of having come to the office in a state of intoxication does
not amount to admission of guilt. It iw not open to the disciplinary
authority to rely upon the medical report. Disciplinary proceedings
imposing a penalty of compulsory retirement without conducting an
inquiry are vitiated.
(266)
Evidence — tape-recorded
Tape record cassette evidence is admissible.