High Court declares removal of BR Powergen chief engineer illegal, orders reinstatement
The High Court has declared illegal the order removing Md Mahbub Kabir, chief engineer of state-owned power company BR Powergen Limited, from his job. At the same time, the court ordered that he be reinstated to his post immediately.
A High Court bench of Justice Shashanka Shekhar Sarkar and Justice Urmi Rahman delivered the verdict. The full text of the judgment was published on the Supreme Court website on Sunday (25 October).
The matter dates back to 2020. On 23 June that year, chief engineer Mahbub Kabir was dismissed on allegations of misconduct amid complications over the source of generators for the Mirsarai power project.
In the verdict, the court said the removal process ran contrary to the principles of natural justice, because during the departmental inquiry no witness was given any opportunity to be cross-examined — a basic requirement of a fair investigation.
The court further observed that the then managing director, Md Abdus Sabur, was himself the principal complainant and a party with a conflict of interest. Yet he attended the board meeting that decided on the removal and influenced the decision.
In this context, the High Court said the universal legal principle that 'no one can be a judge in his own case' had been openly violated.
The verdict also brought to light a startling administrative scandal. A three-member inquiry committee of the company, formed on the directive of the power ministry, had found evidence of widespread irregularities in Mahbub Kabir's removal process in a detailed 56-page report.
But the company's board suppressed that report instead of sending it to the ministry. Worse, the inquiry officers were served show-cause notices and pressured in various ways until written apologies were extracted from them.
An altered report of just eight pages was then produced, dropping all the original findings of irregularity. The High Court described this step by the board as beyond its legal authority.
When a writ was filed in the higher court against the removal, the company questioned the writ's admissibility. The court rejected that objection.
The court made clear in its observations that, as an institution under 100 percent state control, BR Powergen performs functions in the public interest. Therefore, in cases of violation of fundamental rights or abuse of power, a writ against such institutions under Article 102 of the constitution is directly admissible.
The verdict opens the way for chief engineer Mahbub Kabir, dismissed six years ago, to return to his post. The judgment will stand as an important precedent on following the principles of justice in departmental proceedings at state-owned institutions.
