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1. The petitioner joined Indian Army in the year 1979 as an Engineering Graduate. In 1996 he was posted as Officer Commanding of Station Workshop EME at Belgaum, North Karnataka as Lt. Col. At that station, other units including Maratha LIRC commanded by Brigadier S. P. Sharma, (SM) was also stationed. One Col. C. D. Sawant was the Dy. Commandant of the Maratha LIRC. In July 1997 Government of India decided to disband the Station Workshop EME Belgaum and the responsibility to sell off the regimental properties was placed upon the petitioner. Auction of the Regimental Property took place on 16.3.98. A unit namely EME Cell Belgaum was raised in place of the workshop which was also placed under the command of the petitioner. The property of the EME Cell was also disposed of by an auction held on 24.3.1999 in terms of the decision taken on 19.3.99. A final audit of the regimental fund account was submitted on 30.3.1999 signed by all the board members and countersigned by the petitioner. However Major A.K. Singh who also happened to be the chairman of auction board on the very next day i.e. on 31.3.1999 raised certain objections to the audit report. A response was called from the petitioner which was submitted on 5.4.1999. The allegations leveled against the petitioner are about misappropriation of certain properties of the unit not put up for auction, and kept by the petitioner himself by manipulating the auction.

2. It is the case of the petitioner that Col. C. D. Sawant (SM) was inimical to the petitioner and has falsely implicated him in this case. Soon after Major A.K.Singh raised objections, Col. Sawant ordered a Court of Inquiry by appointing his battalion officer Lt. Col. G. C Chohan OF 8 Maratha LI as its Presiding Officer. During the Court of Inquiry the petitioner was attached to Station Head Quarter, Belgaum even though his unit the EME Cell stood disbanded on 31.3.1999 and ceased to exist. It is stated that his movement for next posting to Nagaland was delayed even though he was not connected with the Court of Inquiry. He was allowed to join to his next posting after the conclusion of the Court of Inquiry on 10.8.1999 to 310 Field Station Workshop EME (Nagaland).

6. It will be appropriate to take note of the tentative chargesheet issued to the petitioner which is reproduced hereunder:

The accused No. IC-39032 W Lt Col Ravender Kumar of 310 Stn Wksp EME, C/o 99 APO, attached with the Maratha Light Infantary Regimental Centre, Belgaum is charged with:-
Army Act Section 63 AN OMMISSION PREJUDICIAL TO GOOD ORDER AND MILITARY DISCIPLINE In that he, at Belgaum, on 16 March 1998 and 24 March 1999 while functioning as officer Commanding, EME Cell, Belgaum failed to administer the Regimental fund judiciously by allowing auction of regimental property to the disadvantage of Regimental Fund.
HQ Southern Command ATNKK AND G AREA (A) Stn Hq Belgaum MARATHA LI RC Belgaum 310 Stn Wksp EME C/O 99 APO CDA(O), Pune MS (12)‖
10. The respondents have summarised their case against the petitioner by making following averments in paras 3 (iv) & (v) of their counter affidavit ;

―3.(iv) In reply to para 3(iv) it is submitted that on disbandment of the station workshop, EME Belgaum on 31.7.1997, the new unit called EME cell, Belgaum with one officer, one Junior Commissioned Officer and 6 other ranks was to be raised by transfer of personnel from disbanded Station Workshop, EME Belgaum. The petitioner as Officer Commding was aware of the disbandment of this EME Cell, Belgaum well before 19th March 1999. Though the Station Workshop EME, Belgaum stood disbanded on 31.7.1997, the work on transfer of unit personnel, deposition /distribution unserviceable stores/properties, disposal of Regiment and other Government properties, connected documents was not completed by the petitioner well before 31.7.1997 as it is quite common that works of raising/disbandment carries on beyond the dates fixed for the same.