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Justice SM Subramaniam of Madras High Court has held that public servants using mobile phones and taking videos inside the office is a grave misconduct. The court has further held that the officials working in the Government Departments should never be allowed to use mobile phones inside the office for their personal use.

The court noted that,

“If at all, any emergency call is to be attended, proper permission must be obtained from superiors to go out from the office and use mobile phones. In all circumstances, the mobile phones must be either switched off or kept in vibration / silent mode, without causing any disturbance or nuisance to be public, who all are attending the office as well as the other officials working in the office.”

The court made above observations in a matter wherein a Superintendent in the Regional Workshop (Health) sought for quashing of her suspension. The said person was placed under suspension for misbehaving when she was reprimanded as she was found to be taking videos inside the work premises during the officer hours using her mobile phone.

The court while noting that it cannot conduct enquiry in respect of such allegations, which are to be gone into by the Disciplinary Authority at the time of enquiry held that the Government should take serious note of this and has to issue appropriate circular / instructions to all the Government Offices to ensure that the mobile phones are either kept in a common cloakroom at the time of entering into the office and for emergency calls, the official numbers kept in the office are to be utilised.

The court further noted that, “In the event of allowing the employees to use mobile phones, without any restriction inside the office or allowing them to use mobile cameras inside the office, the same will result in serious consequences, even amongst the employees and the public, who all are attending the office.”

The court upon being informed that many public servants use mobile phones and cameras in the Government Offices remarked “this Court is of the great surprise, whether the employees are using mobile phones during office hours or performing their duties and responsibilities as allotted to them.” The court noted that if such indiscipline and misconduct are allowed to be continued, the public servants are committing the ‘greatest sin’ to the public by getting tax payers' money as huge salary.

The court thus noted that “the Government is duty bound to ensure that the public servants are not wandering with mobile phones inside the office during office hours and it is to be regulated in accordance with the Tamil Nadu Government Servants' Conduct Rules, 1973.”

In conclusion the court rejected the prayer to quash the order of suspension of the Superintendent. The court however directed the government to issue within court weeks appropriate Circular / Instructions to all the Subordinate Officers / Officials across the State of Tamil Nadu regulating the usage of Mobile Phones and Mobile Cameras inside the Office premises during office hours and further directed that in the “event of any violation of the Guidelines / Instructions to be formulated, strict actions are to be initiated under the relevant Tamil Nadu Government Servants' Conduct Rules, 1973.”

The court directed the government to frame regulations for the usage of Mobile Phones and Mobile Cameras inside the Office during office hours and exceptions are to be carved out for usage of official Mobile Phones and Telephones by the Field Officers and by the Officials, who all are authorised for such purpose.

Case title: D.S.Radhika Vs State of Tamil Nadu