HC asks AIR to expedite hearing against Assembly Secretary

The Delhi High Court today asked the All India Radio to expeditiously conclude the disciplinary proceedings initiated by it against the Delhi Assembly Secretary, who is stuck in a tug-of-war between the Centre and the AAP government.
Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, while disposing of a petition of Secretary Prasanna Kumar Suryadevara to quash the disciplinary proceeding against him, also directed him to file a written response within 10 days to the memos and charge sheet issued against him by the All India Radio (AIR).
The court said after Suryadevara filed his response, the inquiry shall proceed as per law and directed the AIR to conclude the proceedings "as expeditiously as possible".

The proceeding was initiated against him by the AIR, his parent cadre, for not returning to it even after then Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung had ordered his repatriation in August last year. Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel had refused to relieve the official then.
In the instant matter as Suryadevara had not responded to the memos and charge sheet, the AIR had passed an ex-parte order for initiating an inquiry against him.
During the hearing, AIR's counsel said they were ready for relegating to the stage where charge sheet and memorandum were served on Suryadevara last year.

The court had earlier suggested that Suryadevara should respond to the disciplinary proceeding initiated against him by the AIR.

The AIR's proceedings against him was also being carried out for writing an article - 'Neither Office, Nor Profit', with the permission of the Delhi Assembly Speaker, who too has already moved the court against Suryadevara's repatriation.
Earlier, an issue of maintainability was raised by the services department of the Delhi government and the AIR.
The AIR and the services department had said that as Suryadevara was a central government appointee on deputation to the Delhi Assembly, therefore the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) was the appropriate forum to deal with the matter.
On the other hand, it was argued on behalf of Suryadevara that since he was appointed to the secretarial services of the Delhi Assembly, he would not come under the jurisdiction of the Tribunal as per the CAT Act.

Suryadevara, an officer of the Newsreader-cum-Translator (Telugu) cadre, was deputed to the Delhi Assembly for a year after which Jung had ordered to relieve him.
Goel had, however, refused to relieve the official, insisting that since he, as the Speaker, held a constitutional office and the LG cannot repatriate the Assembly secretary without his concurrence.
Suryadevara had earlier served in the offices of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee for five years and Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari for over six years.