The charged officer must equip himself with the following material, knowledge and information resources before commencement of the regular inquiry. Normally the regular inquiry will commence after a gap of one month from the date of the preliminary inquiry. He must make gainful use of the intervening time.

1. Verified copies of Management Documents - He must have studied them and noted all instances where statements or assertions made therein are to be rebutted and the mode through such rebuttal is to be done. Rebuttal is to be done in two forms, viz. by denying what is to be denied, and by explaining and neutralising the effect of the remaining cases.

2. List of Management Witness - By this time he must know briefly what questions will be put to each witness by the PO in the Examination-in-Chief and what the witness would be testifying. The CO must object if PO in examination-in-chief questions on matters not relevant to the charge-sheet. CO must also specifically point out that if the PO is to drag further the field of inquiry, the CO has to be given fresh opportunities to locate and discover defence evidences relevant to the new issues being raised.

3. Copies of defence documents - Charged Officer has already stated the relevancy of each document. Keep an internal note how each defence document tends to prove specific contentions of the defence case. This will be useful for drawing the defence statement and defence brief. Before handing over copies of the defence documents to the Inquiry Officer and PO, it will be advisable to highlight important portions of each document, using light color marking-devices. While reading each documents such marked-up portion should readily attract the attention of the Inquiry officer.

4. List of Defence Witness - CO has to discuss in detail with each witness the content of his testimony. He must also educate the witness the probable questions that may be asked in cross-examination, and how the witness should respond to such questions.

Detailed guidelines are separately given to the charged officer with regards to preparation of Defence Statement and Defence Brief. Guidelines are also provided as to when the charged officer should exercise his right to be his own witness, and tender evidence. All these are contained in a special web page titled Preparation of Defence Statement and Brief These guidelines are therefore not repeated here.

1. Carry with you each a copy of the DA Regulations of the Bank for ready reference during inquiry.

2. Prepare index for the Management Documents exhibit-wise and similarly for Defence Documents. File each of these documents in separate Box Files, where these are held together and at the same time it is possible to detach and take out any particular document, temporarily needed, to be put back in its place later, when the purpose is completed. Index is to help quick retrieval of any document needed at any time. Keep the files and keep the Index in your hands for ready reference. It is advi

3. If the DAO were to examine witnesses, only the index will be with him and the entire records will be with the CO. Whenever the DAO wants particular record for the examination of a witnesses, the CO will take out the same and readily provide him that record.

4. The notes prepared for questioning of each witness will also be in two copies, and will be kept separately with the CO and DAO. As the DAO asks questions, the CO will mark them in his copy and keep monitoring the progress. If any questions are left out, the CO will be in a position to point out the same. Once in 5 or 10 minutes during questioning, both CO and DAO by way of a short recess for 2 or 3 minutes will review the questions asked and proceed further. In between some questioning may be done by the CO, and the DAO taking this opportunity to review the entire progress, that nothing is left out.

Guidelines of Examination and Cross-Examination of Witnesses are also already dealt with in a web-page of the same title. Please link to these pages and refresh your memory, if needed. The system of examination of witnesses will not be repeated. But a few information on the content of questions to be asked is relevant here and will be dealt with. Each management witness will testify first for the management in the examination-in-chief by the P.O. Take out/note the gist of his testimony simultaneously. Your objectives now with regards to cross-examining this witness are two-fold.

1. You will put supplementary questions to dilute or dismantle the testimony of the witness in examination-in-chief in favour of the management.

2. Extract tactfully from the witness as many statements as possible to support the defence case, on matters not testified by him in his examination-in-chief, but which the witness is capable of testifying. For this purpose you may also allow the witness to refer to the defence documents to be filed by you.

Disarm initial nervousness or reservations of the witness through easy and friendly questions and statements in the beginning. Ask first the questions which you expect the witness to respond positively and reserve the questions, which may embarrass the witness to the end. Do not frame overstretched lengthy questions , requiring reply of substance of the size of a paragraph. Try to break the matter and ask simple short questions.

One or two witnesses of the Management, with direct knowledge of the disciplinary case can be made best use by the defence. Take out one after the other principal, defence exhibits. Advise the witness to refresh his memory from the contents of the exhibit and ask him questions to testify material covering evidence favourable to the defence through his mouth. Oral evidence is more powerful than dumb records. During the inquiry the contents of the documents are not read and the evidence therein do not surface out. It is taken for granted that inquiry officer will go through them later. But this is only an assumption. If you can bring out important contents of the documents representing the cream of defence evidence during the oral inquiry, there can be no better advantage for you.

Management Witnesses will be provided by the PO facility to refresh their memory by direct reference to relevant records. Similar facility should be provided by the charged officer to defence witness, by providing them full access of the respective exhibits with him. The questions that will be asked by you will be intimated in advance to the witnesses, so that they may be ready with the answers. If needed and should the witness be obliging try to have an advance rehearsal of the exercise. DAO can put the questions in examination-in-chief and the CO later can play a mock-exercise of cross-examining the witness, with likely questions that may be asked by the PO.

Just as you utilized the opportunity to put questions elaborating defence case from the management witness, you may also show relevant management documents to defence witness, for reply if it possible to explain or refute substance of management arguments through the testimony of defence witness.

As a precaution try to cover core material facts evidenced through documents and rely less on oral witnesses. If for some reasons the witness summoned for the defence does not turn up, an adjournment may not be possible. Witness may fail on cross-examination, while such a risk is not faced with reference to documents.

The subject-matter is exhaustively dealt with in the web-page on Defence Statement/Brief. Please refer to the same and be guided accordingly.

Regulation No.6(14) reads as under:-

14. Before the close of the case, in support of the charges, the inquiring authority may, in its discretion, allow the presenting officer to produce evidence not included in the charge sheet or may itself call for new evidence or recall or re-examine any witness. In such case the officer employee shall be given opportunity to inspect the documentary evidence before it is taken on record, or to cross-examine the witness, who has been so summoned. The inquiring Authority may also allow the officer employee to produce new evidence, if it is of the opinion that the production of such evidence, is necessary in the interest of justice.

The above provision should be read in conjunction with relevant provisions expressed after Regulation 6(21)(d) under heading "Explanation" and the proviso to the Explanation, as under:-

Explanation
If, in the opinion of the Inquiring Authority, the proceedings of the inquiry establish any article of charge different from the original charge, it may record its findings on such article of charge;

       Provided that the findings on such articles of charge shall not be recorded unless the officer employee has either admitted the facts on which such articles of charge is based or has had a reasonable opportunity of defending himself against such articles of charge.

This is the provision to cover special exigencies. In a particular case the employee was charge-sheeted for the misconduct of "trespass", but during inquiry material evidence was forthcoming that the employee made an unauthorised entry into the premises and committed 'theft'. Here the employee is not charge-sheeted for 'theft' which can be proved, but he is charge-sheeted for trespass, which is not factual. At best, it can be described as a grossly understated lapse. The regulation is intended to serve under such exigencies to enable the inquiry officer to give finding on the correct misconduct established in the inquiry, as against the misconduct stated in the charge sheet.

It should be noted from the wording of Regulation-14, that evidence for extension of the charge sheet to cover new lapses not mentioned in the charge sheet and introduction of new evidences therefor, can be taken only before the closure of the Management case. Once the management case is closed, and the defence case is taken up, such entry into new areas or new allegations cannot be done.

The charged officer should be alert if such a course is requested by the presenting officer. He should insist on all formalities that were originally observed in the preliminary inquiry in respect of the original material produced by the presenting officer, to be followed also in respect of the additional or new allegations, (like opportunities for the charged officer to inspect the evidence, and request for additional evidence on behalf of the defence to counter-act the fresh evidence being introduced by the PO.)

Corresponding provisions in the Manual of CVC in Chapter 11, Paragraph 15 and paragraph 26 are reproduced hereunder:

15. Admission of additional evidence on behalf of Disciplinary Authority

15.1 Before the close of the case on behalf of the disciplinary authority, the Inquiry Officer may, in his discretion, allow the presenting Officer to produce new oral or documentary evidence not included in the lists of documents and witnesses given to the Government servant with the articles of charge. In such a case the Government servant will be entitled to have, if, he demands it, a copy of the list of further documents proposed to be produced and an adjournment of the inquiry for three clear days before the production of such new evidence exclusive of the date of adjournment and the date to which the enquiry is adjourned. The inquiry Officer will also give the Government servant an opportunity of inspecting such documents before they are taken on the record.

15.2 The Inquiry Officer may also, at his discretion, permit the presenting officer, to recall and re-examine any witness. In such a case the Government servant will be entitled to cross-examine such witness again on any point on which that witness has been re-examined.

15.3 The production of further evidence and/or re-examination of a witness will not be permitted to fill up any gap in the evidence but only when there is an inherent lacuna or defect in the evidence which had been produced originally. The presenting officer should, therefore, when he finds that there is any lacuna or defect in the evidence and that fresh evidence to remove the defect or lacuna is available or that the position can be clarified by recalling a witness, make an application to the inquiry officer to the effect.

Gist of Paragraph No.26.5

26.5 If in the opinion of the Inquiry Officer the proceedings of the inquiry establish an article of charge different from original articles of charge, he may record his findings on such article of charge. The findings on such article of charge will not, however, be recorded unless the Government servant has either admitted the facts on which such article of charge is based or has had a reasonable opportunity during the course of the enquiry of defending himself against such article of charge.

The subject matter is dealt with in detail in a separate web page How to reply final reference from Disciplinary Authority. Please refer to the same and be guided accordingly.

These subjects are also covered in a separate web-page titled How to submit Appeal & Review Petitions or Seek Legal Remedies for necessary guidance to the charged officer.