Supreme Court Holds Ratification and Employee Conduct Bar Withdrawal of Resignation

Case Snapshot

Case Name: Delhi Technological University v. B.S. Rawat

Citation: 2026 INSC 797

Bench: Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe

Date of Judgment: August 4, 2026

Area of Law: Service Law, Resignation, Ratification, Withdrawal of Resignation

The Judgment in One Line

Ratification of an unauthorized acceptance of resignation relates back to cure the defect, and an employee who has accepted benefits of resignation cannot later withdraw it.

Why This Judgment Matters

This landmark judgment clarifies two critical aspects of service law: the doctrine of ratification and the right to withdraw a tendered resignation. The Court held that ratification by the competent authority of an otherwise unauthorized acceptance of resignation operates retrospectively, validating the act from its inception. More importantly, the Court ruled that an employee who has tendered resignation, requested waiver of notice period, accepted all consequential benefits including last pay and experience certificates, and secured fresh employment on that basis, cannot later impugn the resignation on technical grounds. The principle against approbation and reprobation prevents an employee from "having his cake and eating it too."

Background

The respondent, B.S. Rawat, was appointed as Assistant Registrar (Legal) at Delhi Technological University (DTU) on August 23, 2010. On May 19, 2016, he tendered his resignation to take effect from September 1, 2016. He subsequently requested waiver of the notice period and acceptance with effect from May 31, 2016. The then Vice-Chancellor (holding additional charge) accepted the resignation on May 25, 2016, and the respondent was relieved. He received his no-dues certificate, last pay certificate, and ex

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