Doctrine Of Pleasure Vis-À-Vis The Constitutional Safeguards To Civil Servants

Ashmitha Reddy & Diya Singh, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad

ABSTRACT

The Doctrine of Pleasure was included into the Indian Constitution in Part XIV, Article 310, acknowledging its common law roots. The provision of the Crown's pleasure was replaced with the President's satisfaction in the case of public servants working for the Defence or union civil services. Likewise, state civil service employees may be appointed at the governor's discretion.

The Constitution, on the contrary, protects government employees by explicitly declaring in the clauses of Article 310 "except as expressly provided by this Constitution"1 and includes a provision for removal from duty only in situations "connected with any misconduct on their part."2 Additionally, protections for public servants are detailed in Article 311 under the guidelines for elimination from officer of power. Any person holding a position of authority in the public service is guaranteed the right to an opportunity to respond to the accusations made against him, according to the Article, and only the evidence discovered during the inquiry may result in punishment or removal from office.

Additionally, Article 311 of the Indian Constitution3 was written to safeguard public service employees' interests from unjustified dismissal or downgrading. Due to the fact that Article 311 provisions are enforceable in court, the Indian Constitution offers tenure protection to public service personnel. British culture gave rise to the concept of pleasure, which is still important today. The goal and purpose of this study are thus to assess what the liberties of civil servants within India are in relation to the philosophy of pleasure, as well as to conduct a comparative analysis of civil servant rights in India and other nations.