High standard of integrity & honesty is expected of bank employees, says Madras High Court
The Hindu
A high standard of integrity and honesty is expected of bank employees since they deal with the money of the public, and it would only be appropriate to remove from service any such employee found guilty of misappropriation, the Madras High Court has held.
A high standard of integrity and honesty is expected of bank employees since they deal with the money of the public, and it would only be appropriate to remove from service any such employee found guilty of misappropriation, the Madras High Court has held.
A Division Bench of Justices Anita Sumanth and G. Arul Murugan allowed a writ appeal filed by State Bank of India (SBI) and reversed an order passed by a single judge, who had set aside the punishment imposed on an employee, ordering the payment of all service benefits to him.
“When the respondent (M. Palaniappan) had acted prejudicial to the interest of the customer, which will also erode the public trust over the bank... we are of the considered view that the punishment imposed is not disproportionate or shocking our conscience; rather, it is proportionate to the charges,” the Bench wrote.
SBI counsel Chevanan Mohan brought to the notice of the court that the employee was recruited as a clerk in 1998 and posted as an assistant at the Karaikudi branch in 2002. He had then received a cheque issued by a NRE (Non Resident - External) account holder of the bank.
The cheque for ₹15,000 had been issued by the account holder, Jan Batcha, in favour of Ghouse Myan. Instead of directing Mr. Myan to the cashier for encashing the cheque, the assistant sent him away, stating it would take a few days to draw the money from the account.
The assistant, however, produced the cheque before the cashier on the same day and received the money by affixing his signature at the back of the cheque leaf. When Mr. Myan returned to the bank a few days later, the assistant insisted that he wait for a few more days and gave him ₹4,000 alone.
When the practice continued, Mr. Myan lodged a complaint with the bank manager, leading to a departmental inquiry. Apart from the charge of fraudulent encashment of the cheque, the assistant was also charged with not reporting for work on time and absenting himself unauthorisedly after lunch hours.