VIGILANCE MANUAL VOLUME III - AP Online

956 DECISION - 536
the integrity and purity of the investigation process. Clause (4)(d) of
the said Memorandum of guidelines suggests that in a case where
the charge sheet is filed against an accused officer he should be
placed under suspension. The impugned clause does not suffer
from any legal infirmity. The Government is always entitled to issue
guidelines for the benefit of its officers in order to structure their
discretion in the matter of exercise of statutory power in public interest.
There is nothing wrong in Government directing the authorities
concerned to place its officer under suspension particularly when a
charge sheet under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act,
1988 is filed in a competent court of jurisdiction after completing the
investigation. The guidelines issued are not in nature of any command
as such. The authorities concerned have to weigh and take various
relevant factors into consideration before exercising their jurisdiction
to place an officer under suspension pending enquiry. The High Court
observed that the competent authority cannot be prevented from
initiating any action as such against the petitioner. Such a course is
not permissible in law.
The High Court also considered the contention of the
petitioner that the failure to complete the investigation within six
months in terms of the instructions issued in the above-said Memo
vitiates the entire investigation and the report submitted by the
Investigating Officer and that no further proceedings can be allowed
to go on against the petitioner since the Investigating Officer failed to
complete the investigation within six months as is required in
accordance with the said Memo issued by the Government.
The guidelines issued by the Government requiring the
Investigating Officers to complete the investigation expeditiously,
preferably within six months, do not have any statutory force and
they were merely in the nature of instructions for the guidance of the
Investigating Officers. It is well settled that a writ in the nature of
mandamus cannot be issued to enforce the administrative
instructions. The guidelines issued by the Government to its
Investigating Officers do not confer any enforceable right upon any
person. Any breach of those guidelines is not justiciable. The