The New Indian Express ·
Orissa HC orders fresh review of 'not trustworthy' remark against judicial officer in CCR
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has directed its registrar general to place before the Chief Justice for reconsideration the representation of a judicial officer challenging an adverse Confidential Character Roll (CCR) entry that described him as “not trustworthy”.
A division bench of Justices Manash Ranjan Pathak and Sibo Sankar Mishra allowed the writ petition filed by an officer of the Orissa Superior Judicial Service.
The officer had challenged the adverse remarks communicated to him in October 2022, and the subsequent rejection of his representation in October 2023. He had sought expunction of the remarks and the “average” grading awarded to him for the year 2021.
The officer contended that the serious remark under the “Integrity” head was recorded without citing any specific incident or reason. He also claimed that he had enjoyed a long and satisfactory service career and never faced an adverse comment until his tenure as registrar (judicial) in the High Court Registry.
He joined judicial service as a Civil Judge (Junior Division) in November 1997 and had since served in different posts.
The bench noted that the adverse entry actually related to a limited period between January 4 and February 15, 2021. It said the then Chief Justice had made the assessment on the basis of materials available at the time, including allegations and the imputation of charges in a departmental proceeding.
The court observed that the Chief Justice had assumed office only on January 4, 2021 and didn’t have sufficient time to make a comprehensive assessment of petitioner officer’s performance. It also referred to Clause 5(a) of the General Rules for Confidential Reports of Officers (GRCO), which contemplates at least four months for assessment.
However, the bench pointed out that the materials forming the basis of the adverse entry were subsequently judicially examined and found unsustainable. Those materials were set aside by the high court in its May 27 judgment in another writ petition.
“Therefore, the entire matter has to be reviewed in the light of the judgment dated 27.05.2026 (May 26, 2026),” the bench said.
The court directed the registrar general to place the matter before the Chief Justice for reconsideration petitioner officer’s representations and a decision on whether the issue should be placed before the Full Court for expunging the adverse remark.