Can the company take legal action on me if I have accepted the appointment letter but didn't join

I have accepted a company's letter of appointment since I didn't have an offer and wanted to join the company. In the letter, they didn't mention the joining date but said that it will be conveyed later. They held a five-day induction program which I attended and on the fifth day told to join the company from the next day. But now I don't feel the company has a job role of my interest and don't want to join. Can the company take legal action against me as I didn't actually start the job yet? Also, it was stated in the letter that if I didn't complete my retention period (1 year), I will have to serve a notice period of 3 months or, if failing to do so, return the money equivalent to the last 3 months' salary even though I have not joined the job yet.

One cannot be hyper-technical. When you attended the induction training, it was only as an employee, which means after joining. Now, post-training, you didn't take charge; hence, you are not bound to serve the notice period. This is not an argument that will have legal force.

Thank you for the explanation as I was very tense due to this. I am a fresher and I would like to find a job of my interest. Your answer really motivated me.

Dear colleague,

It is not in good taste to leave the organization shortly after joining and completing induction. But in your case, the job role does not match your interest. It may be mutually good to quit rather than continue as a disgruntled soul. But quit in good taste, clarifying your honest stand and fulfilling the notice period requirements and any other due obligations. This approach may preempt any legal exposure.

Regards,
Vinayak Nagarkar
HR and Employee Relations Consultant

Answer is no.

If you accept the offer but do not join, they will not take any action at all. HR may just pester you by calling.