Was My Job Termination While in Custody Unlawful? Seeking Advice on Legal Action

I was arrested in connection with an FIR and spent 75 days in judicial custody. Upon being granted bail, I promptly informed my employer, only to discover that I had been terminated after the initial 25 days. The reason cited was that I had voluntarily absconded from my duties. Despite my attempts to appeal this decision to the HR department, they have shown no willingness to reconsider.

Is this not a case of unlawful termination? Considering I was incarcerated and had no means of contacting or updating my employer, can I pursue legal action in court to seek justice in this matter? Your guidance on this issue would be greatly appreciated.

First of all, did the information about your arrest reach the employer directly or indirectly? Then, did you apply for leave until your return? Furthermore, is there any rule in the organization presuming abandonment of service or termination of service in case of a specified period of absence without information? Did the employer also ask you to report for duty, failing which they would terminate you from service?

If the employer has simply terminated you from service for absence, then there is the famous DTC case decided by the Supreme Court which states that such terminations are wrongful and illegal (Ref.: Delhi Transport Corporation vs D.T.C. Mazdoor Congress on 4 September 1990).

Please provide more details for further examination.

You can challenge the termination order by obtaining a certified copy of your bail order and a confirmation slip from the jailor if you have been in custody. File a petition before the appropriate court or tribunal, attaching these two documents, and referencing the suggested case law.

HR or my organization had no clue where I was, and they only sent two emails between 12th September and 21st September. Finally, they terminated me on 22nd September. I was in JC until 11th November, and I informed my employer of my arrest on 12th November. I requested to reverse the decision, but they said they can't reverse the decision at all.

Clause in Offer Letter
As per my offer letter, I saw a clause that unauthorized absence beyond 7 days would initiate an HR inquiry. Now, I was in JC from 28th August to 11th November. I had no chance to inform anyone. Kindly help with my preparation to file a case against my employer.

Better to appoint a lawyer for your case. It is not possible to prepare the court's documents through and over this platform, whereas you can seek an opinion for any specific doubt.

I just spoke to HR of the organization, and now he is telling me that I have to pay for 69 days of notice period recovery. Additionally, I was terminated after 21 days since the first absconding email was sent. My question is, can an organization impose a recovery for notice when they terminated me due to absconding? They are now aware that I was arrested and spent 75 days in judicial custody. Kindly suggest.

No, the company is acting unreasonably. If they have come to know that you were in custody, their recovery notice is unlawful.