2. It is clarified that the intention of the above penalty is to inflict monetary loss to the Government servant concerned and it has therefore to be ensured that he does not escape this loss by his subsequent promotion. In such cases the following course of action may be adopted.
(a) the penalty may be reviewed by
the authority to whom an appeal lies against the penalty imposed in the post
from which he was promoted or by an authority, higher to that authority and an
alternative penalty may be imposed on the promotion, namely,
(i) in a case where on promotion to
a higher post the delinquent officer's pay has been fixed at an intermediary
stage in the time scale of pay of the post, the penalty of withholding of increments
may be modified by reducing his pay in the higher post to a lower stage, for a
specified period, keeping in view the amount of monetary loss that he would
have sustained in the lower post had he not been promoted. The following
illustration makes it clear. 'A' at the time of imposing the penalty of
withholding of increments was drawing a pay of Rs.410 in the time scale of pay
of Rs.250-20-450-25-500. On promotion to a post carrying a scale of pay Rs.
375-25-500-30-800, his initial pay is fixed at Rs. 425 and the total monetary
loss which he would have suffered in the lower post, but for promotion is Rs.
240 (12 X 20). If the punishment is modified so as to reduce 'A's pay in the time
scale of Rs. 375-800 from Rs. 425 to the stage of Rs. 400 for a period of nine
or ten months, the officer would have been subject to the same monetary loss,
which he would have suffered, had he not been promoted,
(ii) if the pay of such officer has
been fixed at the minimum of the scale of pay of the post to which he has been
promoted and the minimum of the scale of that post is higher than his pay in
the lower post his increment for a specified period, so as to entail the
monetary loss that he would have sustained in the lower post, had he not been
promoted, may be withheld.
(b) in cases where the officer on whom it is proposed to impose the penalty of withholding of increments is likely to get promotion, the authority competent to impose such penalty may in the show-cause notice and in the final orders imposing the penalty clarify that the intention is that the increments that may accrue in the time scale of the post to which the delinquent officer may be-promoted shall also be withheld.
The
modified penalty should be imposed under Rule 31 (1) (c) of the said rules by
the aforesaid authority after issue of show cause notice against the proposed
modified penalty and after considering the explanation of the officer thereto.
