NON-REPORTABLE

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NO.1615 OF 2009 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 2389 of 2008)

R. K. Jangra                                                                  ……….Appellant

Versus

State of Punjab and Others                                           ……..Respondent

ORDER  

H.L. Dattu,J.  

Leave granted.

1)This appeal is directed against the judgment and order passed by the

High Court of Judicature at Chandigarh in Civil Writ Petition No. 1333

of 2007 dated 29.1.2007.  By the impugned order, the High Court has

directed the appellant  to approach the civil  court  for correction of his

date of birth in the service records.

2)The  facts  in  brief  are:-  the  appellant,  R.  K.  Jangra,  when  he  joined

service  as  Additional  Design  Engineer  with  respondent  No.2  on

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11.1.1980,  he  had  produced  his  Higher  Secondary Part-I  examination

certificate dated 19.7.1969 as the proof for his date of birth.  In the said

certificate his date of birth was shown as 4.1.1952. The appellant within

two years of his joining service, had made an application for change of

his date of birth from 4.1.1952 to 3.1.1953 before the Additional District

Registrar,  Births  & Deaths,  Jalandhar,  by stating  that  his  mother  was

illiterate and she had given the wrong date of birth  while seeking his

admission in the Primary School. The Additional Registrar had obliged

the appellant by issuing a birth certificate showing the date of birth as

3.1.1953 vide his order dated 19.5.1981. The appellant armed with the

said  certificate  had  made  a  representation  before  his  employer  for

correction of his date of birth in his service record.  

3)Since  the  request  in  the  representation  did  not  yield  any result,  the

appellant once again made a detailed representation to respondent No.2

for the same relief.  This representation was answered by respondent no.

2, by directing the appellant to get the correction of date of birth done in

the  Matriculation  Certificate  from the  Registrar  of  Punjab  University.

The request made in this regard is rejected by the Registrar of Punjab

University  by  informing  the  appellant,  that,  the  application  filed  is

beyond the time limit prescribed in the regulations of the University.   

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4)The Government of Punjab by its order dated 21.6.1994 amended the

Punjab  Civil  Service Rules  and in  that  had  provided,  that,  employees

who are already in the service of Government of Punjab may apply for

change of date of birth within a period of 2 years from coming into force

of  the  said  Rules  before  the  competent  authority.  The  request  made

pursuant  to  the  aforesaid rules,  is  rejected by the Registrar  of Punjab

University, by informing the appellant that the application filed by him is

beyond the time limit prescribed in the university regulations. Not being

satisfied with the endorsement so issued, the appellant once again by his

representation  dated  20.9.1995,  made  a  request  before  the  State

Government for correction of his date of birth. The State Government

vide its letter dated 18.12.1995 had rejected the claim of the appellant.

The  appellant  again  made  several  representation  before  various

authorities. All these authorities had asked appellant to furnish sufficient

records/evidence to act upon his request made in his representation.  In

spite of supplying all the information asked, since no action was taken,

the appellant filed a writ petition before the Punjab High Court praying

for  issuance  of  a  writ  in  the  nature  of  mandamus,  directing  the

respondents  to  make appropriate  correction of his  date  of birth  in  the

service records of the appellant.  

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5)The High Court without going into the merits of the case rejected the

petition  by  its  impugned  order  dated  29.1.2007.  The  High  Court  has

observed:-

“It will be just and appropriate to relegate the appellant to

avail his ordinary remedy before a Civil Court.  Aggrieved

by the said order, appellant is before us by this special leave

petition.”

6)We have heard learned counsel for the parties.  

7)Appellant, in spite of his attempts right from the year 1981, has failed

to come out of the perplexing web of the bureaucracy.  Appellant who is

due to retire in January 2010 is praying for another extra year of service.

He has made several representations in this regard without getting any

results.   At  this  juncture  he  only  wants  his  representation  being

considered in proper perspective and in accordance with law and to give

him  one  more  year  of  extension  of  service  by  making  appropriate

correction of his date of birth in the service records.  

8)In  view  of  the  above  discussion,  in  the  peculiar  facts  and

circumstances,  we  direct  the  competent  authority/Principal  Secretary,

Department  of  Irrigation,  Punjab,  Chandigarh  to  consider  the

representation  filed  by  the  appellant  on  8.5.1987,  in  the  light  of

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documents and material produced by him, within a month from the date

of this order, if the representation made by the appellant is available with

the  respondent  untrammeled  by any  of  the  observations  made  in  the

earlier orders.  If such representation is not available in their records, the

competent  authority  will  call  upon  the  appellant  to  file  a  fresh

representation  with  all  the  particulars  required  and  consider  the  same

within a reasonable time.   

9) In view of the above discussion, the appeal is allowed.  The impugned

order passed by the High Court is set aside. No order as to costs.  

                                                                                     …………………………………J.                                                                                        [TARUN CHATTERJEE]

                                                                                     …………………………………J.                                                                                        [ H.L. DATTU ] New Delhi, March 16, 2009.

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