( 1 ) THE writ petitioner herein was appointed as Nirapatta Karmi, Santiniketan the pettioner's service was extended by the authority of Visva-Bharati from time to time By an office order dated March 16,1990 the Upacharya regularized the servces of the Group- 'd' employees including the petitioner ( 2 ) BY another officer order dated 20 08 1991 the authority concerned attached the petitioner to Sriniketan Cash Section until further order In the said office order direction was given to release the petitioner immediately and accordingly, Security Officer, Visva-Bharati was requested to release the petitioner Pursuant to the said office order, the petitioner joined his duty by submitting the joining report ( 3 ) BY another office order dated 03 12 1997 the petitioner was placed in the next higher scale of pay Thereafter, the petitioner was granted temporary promotion to the post of Jr Office Assistant-cum-Typist at Snniketan Accounts office Accordingly, the petitioner joined the promoted post submitting his joining report dated 11 061999 ( 4 ) THE petitioner, thereafter, got involved in a criminal case under Sections 420/409 of I P C read with Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 ( 5 ) ON 30 10 2000 the petitioner was suspended On 20 12 2000 he was released on bail On 7th January, 2001 the petitioner made representation before the authority to allow him to resume his duty after revocation of the suspension order but that was not done as yet and as such the petitioner challenging the order of suspension has moved this instant writ petition ( 6 ) AFFIDAVIT-IN-OPPOSITION was filed on behalf of Visva-Bharati where xerox copy of relevant Service Rule (relevant provision) for suspension has been annexed Rule 48 was the said relevant provision Rule 48 is quoted here inbelow -"48 Suspension (1) The 'appointing authority or any other authority empowered by this Karma-Samiti in this behalf may place employee, under suspension (a) when a disciplinary proceedings against him is contemplated or pending, or (b) when a case against him in respect of a criminal offence is under investigation, enquiry or trial, or (c) when he is detained in custody, whether on a criminal charge of otherwise, for a period exceeding forty-eight hours. or (d) when on conviction for an offence he is sentenced to a term of imprisonment exceeding forty-eight hours provided that in all such cases where an order of suspension is made by an authority lower than the appointing authority such authority shall within two days report to the appointing authority the circumstances in which the order was made note Failure on the part of the employee to intimate to his official superiors the fact of his arrest or his arraignment before a Court of law on a criminal charge shall be regarded as a suppression of material information and shall render him liable for disciplinary action on that ground alone, apart from the action that may be called for on the outcome of the criminal case against him (2) Where a penalty of dismissal, removal or compulsory retirement from service, imposed upon an employee under suspension, is set aside (in appeal or review under these rules, and the case is remitted for further enquiry or action or with any other direction, the order of his suspension shall be deemed to have continued on all from the date of his original order of dismissal, removal or compulsory retirement till the revived proceedings are completed (3) An order of suspension made under this rule shall continue to remam in force until it is modified or revoked by a Court or the authority which passes the order of suspension or the superior authority competent to do so or until it merges in the final order of penalty or acquittal (4) Where the order of penalty is set aside or declared or rendered word by the decision of a Court of competent jurisdiction the order of suspension will automatically lapse unless the University obtains a stay order from the Court to file an appeal in which case the order of suspension will abide the result of the appeal But, there shall be no bar to the disciplinary authority again placing the employee under suspension if, on a consideration of the circumstances of the case, it is of opinion that ( 7 ) ACCORDING to the petitioner, the suspension of the petitioner does not relate to his service and this is illegal and the authority cannot keep the petitioner under suspension for an unlimited period. ( 8 ) THE learned Counsel for the respondent authorities submitted that if the inquiry, trial or investigation of a criminal offence is pending then the in cumbept concerned can be suspended and it shall continue unless modified or revoked by the Court or authority which passes the order of suspension or the superior authority competent to do so or until it merges in the final order of penalty or acquittal. ( 9 ) HEARD the learned Counsel for the respective parties. From the plain readingif Rule 48 in its entirety it appears that the employee concerned can be suspended by the authority where a criminal trial is pending or investigation or inquiry IS pending. It also appears that subsequently, departmental proceeding can continue and till the completion of the departmental proceeding or the acquittal by the Criminal Court the suspension order will continue, in the instant case the employee has been simply suspended. As yet, no charge-sheet, no inquiry is there on behalf of the authority. ( 10 ) THERE are two types of suspension - one is suspension pending or in contemplation of a departmental proceeding and the other is penal suspension. Penal sqspension can only be issued after the proceeding being made or inquiry being conducted and in the instant case this is not a penal inasmuch as no proceeding was initiated and no inquiry has been done. Then it must be the other i. e. the other kind of suspension in contemplation or pendency of a departmental proceeding. In this type of suspension the employee is suspended to keep him/her away from his/her place of work and therefore, suspension must be relating to his/her work or working area or sector. If that is not so, then the suspension becomes abnormal in procedure that is, the incumbent employee is suspended without any cause. ( 11 ) IN the rule, pendency of criminal trial has been described but this pendericy of criminal trial must be relating to his service or relating to his service area or zone, otherwise if it is a case under Sections 420/409, this does not affect His service area and the incumbent employee need not have to be kept away from his working place that apart in so many cases the Hon'ble Apex court has observed that an employee cannot be kept under suspension for an unlimited period. Either the proceeding is to be initiated or suspension is to be withdrawn. This is also covered by the decision of this Court reported in 2006 vol. (1) CHN 34, Chhabi Chakraborty v. State of West Bengal and Ors. ( 12 ) HERE, in the instant case, suspension order has been issued in 2000 october but even after over 5 years the authority could not start any disciplinary proceeding. Now, remains the criminal trial. The criminal trial will take its own course. It does not appear also that the criminal case relates to the service area or concerning his service. According to the petitioner this case has been initiated on political issue and in the opposition excepting denial nothing more could be said, in the opposition it has not also been stated as to when the departmental proceeding will start or as to when the charge-sheet will be issued. Everything is in dark and it does not appear that the authority intends to issue any charge-sheet or initiate any departmental proceeding against the petitioner. ( 13 ) AS stated above, under this type of suspension, the petitioner cannot be kept under suspension for an unlimited period and the suspension order, therefore, appears to be bad and is liable to be set aside. ( 14 ) THEREFORE, set aside the impugned order of suspension and direct the authority concerned to allow the petitioner to resume his duty within a period of forthight from the date of communication of the order. The writ petition is thus allowed. There will be no order as to costs.