HC upholds sacking of CRPF constable for attempting suicide

"We dismiss the writ petition...," Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Manmohan Singh said, adding "What we intend to bring out is that the onus to prove a motive for an attempted suicide cannot be on the shoulders of prosecution at a domestic inquiry."

Raghubir Singh, who had joined CRPF as a constable in 1994, allegedly fired two gun shots at himself on the evening of June 17, 1997 at Gorisagar in Assam during election duty.

The disciplinary authority imposed "penalty of dismissal from service" which came into effect from January 31, 1998.

Seeking his job back, Singh told the high court that he never attempted suicide and was under "mental pressure" when the incident took place and "what happened thereafter was beyond his comprehension".

The court said that in the "absence of any credible explanation given by the petitioner and the attempt to cover up the incident by feigning ignorance, requires an inference to be drawn against the petitioner", and added that it concurred with the findings of CRPF's disciplinary authority.

"It is apparent that since the petitioner had suffered two gunshot wounds from his service weapon, and he was alone at the time when he received the gunshot wounds, it is he alone who knows what happened and it was for him to state the correct facts as to what happened when he fired at himself," it said. MORE