- 1 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 18TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2026 PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH AND THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE H.SHANTHI BHUSHAN WRIT APPEAL NO. 1714 OF 2025 (S-DE) C/W WRIT APPEAL NO. 1887 OF 2025 (S-PRO) IN WA No. 1714/2025 BETWEEN: 1. THE CHAIRMAN AND MANAGING DIRECTOR CORPORATION BANK, (NOW KNOWN AS UNION BANK OF INDIA) HEAD OFFICE: MANGALADEVI TEMPLE ROAD, PANDESHWAR, MANGALURU 575 001. 2. THE GENERAL MANAGER, CORPORATION BANK, (NOW KNOWN AS UNION BANK OF INDIA) HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT, PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION DIVISION, HEAD OFFICE: MANGALADEVI TEMPLE ROAD, PANDESHWAR, MANGALURU 575 001. Digitally signed by VASANTHA KUMARY B K Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 3. THE DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER AND DISCIPLINARY AUTHORITY, HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT, PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION DIVISION, (DISCIPLINARY CELL), CORPORATION BANK (NOW KNOWN AS UNION BANK OF INDIA) HEAD OFFICE: MANGALADEVI TEMPLE ROAD, PANDESHWAR, MANGALURU - 575 001. ALL THE APPELLANTS ARE REPRESENTED BY SRI. V.V.MURUGAN CHIEF MANAGER(HR) …APPELLANTS (BY SRI. PRADEEP S SAWKAR, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. MS N B ANNAPURNA WIFE OF LATE ARVIND DAS RAJBHAN, AGED ABOUT 55 YEARS, E 9317, MANAGER BENGALURU -RAJAJINAGAR BRANCH, RAJAJINAGAR, BANGALORE 560 010. …RESPONDENT (BY SRI. SWAMY N B N., ADVOCATE) THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED U/S 4 OF THE KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT PRAYING TO SET ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 12/06/2025 PASSED BY THE LEARNED SINGLE JUDGE IN WP NO.29738/2019 BY ALLOWING THIS APPEAL AND CONSEQUENTLY DISMISS THE WRIT PETITION IN WP NO.29738/2019 WITH COSTS. - 3 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 IN WA NO. 1887/2025 BETWEEN: 1. THE CHAIRMAND AND MANAGING DIRECTOR THEN CORPORATION BANK, NOW MERGED WITH UNION BANK OF INDIA, REGIONAL OFFICE MANGALADEVI TEMPLE ROAD, PANDESHWAR, MANGALURU - 575 001. 2. THE GENERAL MANAGER, THEN CORPORATION BANK, NOW MERGED WITH UNION BANK OF INDIA, HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT, PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION DIVISION, HEAD OFFICE MANGALADEVI TEMPLE ROAD, PANDESHWAR, MANGALURU - 575 001. ...APPELLANTS (BY SRI. PRADEEP S SAWKAR, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. MS N B ANNAPURNA WIFE OF LATE ARVIND DAS RAJBHAN, AGED ABOUT 55 YEARS, E 9317, MANAGER BENGALURU -RAJAJINAGAR BRANCH, RAJAJINAGAR, BANGALORE - 560 010. ...RESPONDENT (BY SRI. SWAMY N B N., ADVOCATE) THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED U/S 4 OF THE - 4 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT PRAYING TO SET ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 12.06.2025 PASSED BY THE LEARNED SINGLE JUDGE IN WP No. 10996/2019 BY ALLOWING THIS WRIT APPEAL AND CONSEQUENTLY DISMISS THE WRIT PETITION IN WP No. 10996/2019 WITH COSTS IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE AND EQUITY. THESE APPEALS, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, JUDGMENT WAS DELIVERED THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH and HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE H.SHANTHI BHUSHAN ORAL JUDGMENT (PER: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH) Heard Sri. Pradeep S. Sawkar, learned counsel for the appellant-Corporation Bank and Sri. Swamy N.B.N. learned counsel for the respondent. 2. These intra Court Appeals have been filed impugning the common judgment and order dated 12.06.2025 passed by the writ Court in W.P.Nos.29738/2019 and 10996/2019 instituted by the respondent herein. 3. The parties are referred to as per their ranking before the writ Court for the sake of convenience. - 5 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 4. The petitioner while working as Grade 3 Officer and when posted as Senior Manager of the appellant-Bank in the Whitefield Branch, faced the disciplinary proceedings in respect of the loans sanctioned by her during her tenure as Branch Manager of Brahmanipura Branch from 14.08.2015 to 03.02.2017. During the audit several irregularities were pointed out in sanctioning the loans by the petitioner. The enquiry officer found the charges proved against the petitioner and disciplinary authority after issuing show cause notice to the petitioner for proposed punishment, inflicted punishment of scaling down from Middle Management Grade/Scale III to Middle Management Grade/Scale II with the basic pay of Rs.44,600/- per month and thereby reducing her basic pay by Rs.10,000/- from the last drawn pay. 5. Being aggrieved by the said order of punishment inflicted by the Disciplinary Authority vide order dated 30.11.2018, the petitioner filed an appeal under Regulation 17 of the Corporation Bank Officers (Discipline and Appeal) Regulations, 1982. The appellate authority vide order dated 10.05.2019 dismissed the appeal. - 6 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 6. As the petitioner was due for promotion, sealed cover procedure was adopted. However, as she was inflicted with punishment by which her designation was reduced from Middle Management Grade/Scale III to Middle Management Grade/Scale II, sealed cover was not opened for which she filed writ petition in W.P.No.10996/2019 (S-PRO) impugning the communication/order dated 20.02.2019 whereby she was denied permission to participate in the promotion process for the year 2019-20. The writ petition in W.P.No.29738/2019 (S- DE) was filed against the imposition of the major punishment as well as the order passed by the appellate authority. The petitioner had filed a third petition i.e. W.P.No.5598/2020 (S- PRO) Challenging promotion of officers to middle Management Grade IV and the petitioner's claim was not considered for the reason of her being punished. 7. All these three petitions were taken up together for consideration by learned Single Judge. The learned Single Judge in the order impugned herein has not found any infraction of the relevant rules or the principle of natural justice. However, the learned Single Judge has been of the - 7 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 opinion that reduction of the scale of the petitioner from Middle Management Grade III to Middle Management Grade II is harsh and excessive and the same deserves to be modified. 8. It is well settled law that unless the punishment imposed is shockingly disproportionate, the Court should not interfere with the quantum of punishment. Even where the Court finds that the punishment is highly excessive, the matter should be remanded back to the competent authority to reconsider the quantum of punishment. The Court should not take upon itself to modify the punishment. 9. In view of the well established law, we set aside the impugned judgment and order dated 12.06.2025 of the learned Single Judge modifying the punishment itself and remand the matter back to the appellate authority to re-consider the quantum of punishment imposed on the petitioner after taking into consideration the observation of the learned Single Judge. 10. We allow both the writ appeals and remand the matter to the appellate authority with the aforesaid direction and clarification. - 8 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010679102025 NC: 2026:KHC:44499-DB WA No. 1714 of 2025 C/W WA No. 1887 of 2025 11. So far as the direction for promotion is concerned, till the petitioner's punishment is set aside, she cannot be considered for promotion for a period of three years and therefore, that direction is also set aside to re-consider the matter afresh so far as quantum of punishment is concerned within a period of two months. 12. Pending interlocutory applications, if any, stand disposed of. Sd/- (D K SINGH) JUDGE Sd/- (H.SHANTHI BHUSHAN) JUDGE NG CT:SN List No.: 1 Sl No.: 16