Chandigarh, Oct. 18 -- The Punjab and Haryana high court has set a timeline for completion of departmental proceedings against an employee in Punjab and Haryana.

"Protracted enquiries breed inefficiency, demoralisation, and distrust in the system thereby defeating the very purpose of the disciplinary mechanism established to ensure that principles of efficiency, integrity and accountability are upheld. A lack of seriousness in pursuing charges reflects poorly on the administration and may indicate malice or oblique motives. Thus, this court cannot allow the employer to keep the sword of disciplinary action dangling over an employee indefinitely," the bench of justice Harpreet Singh Brar observed.

The court was dealing with a plea from o...