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Delhi High Court has clarified in an important order that it is mandatory for the soldiers appointed in the Central Armed Forces to serve at least 10 years. The court said that in case of a soldier voluntarily leaving the job, additional burden cannot be put on the government exchequer. The High Court said in its reasoning that the government has to spend lakhs of rupees to prepare one soldier or paramilitary force soldier. This includes the recruitment process, training, resources and other administrative costs. In such a situation, if a soldier leaves the job before the stipulated period, it causes fiscal loss.

Delhi High Court Justice B. A division bench of Justice Kameshwar Rao and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora has refused to grant any relief to the candidate who left the job after getting appointment to the post of Sub-Inspector in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). The petitioner had demanded from the court that the amount of Rs 2 lakh 57 thousand 544 deposited during the training should be returned along with interest. However, the High Court did not accept this argument and said that the government incurs huge expenditure on training in central military/paramilitary forces, which cannot be refunded in case of voluntary leaving the service.

Rejecting the petition, the division bench of the Delhi High Court made it clear that every candidate applying for military and paramilitary forces is bound to follow the prescribed service conditions. These conditions also include the provision that the amount spent on training will be deposited with the concerned force as security.

The court said that if someone voluntarily leaves the job after getting appointment, the amount deposited for his training will not be refunded. The bench also clarified that in this regard, a written consent form is taken from the candidate, in which he accepts all these conditions. The High Court said that in the present case also the entire process was followed as per the rules and the petitioner himself had signed the consent form. In such a situation, the demand for refund of training fees is not legally acceptable.

Had left the job citing family reasons

After getting appointment to the post of Sub-Inspector in CISF, the petitioner had resigned during the training itself. He had cited family reasons for leaving the job. CISF also provided counseling to the candidate through psychologists to reconsider the decision, so that he could be convinced to continue in the service. However, despite this he remained firm on his decision. Ultimately, when the Department saw no other option, the petitioner’s resignation was accepted as per the rules. After this, he approached Delhi High Court for refund of training fees, which was rejected by the court.

Continued to look for other job options

During the hearing of the case, it also came to light that even after starting training in CISF, the petitioner continued to look for other job options. During this time, he got appointment to the post of Junior Judicial Assistant. It became clear in the hearing that the real reason for leaving the job was not family but to get another government job.

Commenting strongly on this, the High Court bench said that the security amount is deposited for the same purpose, so that the appointed soldier serves the country for at least 10 years and the government expenditure on training can be compensated. The court said that continuously looking for other options even after getting the appointment shows an irresponsible attitude towards one’s duty and responsibility. The bench made it clear that there is no legal basis for refund of training fees in such cases, as it not only misuses government resources but also raises questions on discipline and commitment in the armed forces.

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