STATE OF MYSORE Vs. H L CHABLANI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by the State of Mysore on a certificate granted by the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad under Art. 132 of the Constitution can be disposed of on two very short grounds, and it is necessary to state such facts only as have reference to those two grounds.

(2.) The respondent, H. L. Chablani, was first appointed as Deputy Jailor at Jalna in the State of Hyderabad, as it was then called, on December 14, 1948. On April 7, 1950, he was appointed to officiate as Assistant Superintendent of Jails in the said State. In February, 1951, the Hyderabad Public Service Commission invited applications for four posts of Assistant:Superintendents, Central Jails in the Hyderabad Division. The advertisement by which applications were invited for the aforesaid posts stated inter alia that the candidates must not be less than 21 years or more than 25 years of age on February 24, 1951; it also stated that a concession in age would be allowed to temporary Government servants, retired officers of the Hyderabad Army or State ex-service men and surplus staff in any department of the Hyderabad State of the extent to the period of service already put in. The advertisement further required candidates to enclose with their applications Matriculation certificates in proof of age, and in the case of Government servants the advertisement directed that a reference to the service book or Civil List should be given. On February 19, 1951, the respondent sent an application in which he stated that his date of birth was February 25, 1926. This was also the date of his birth as recorded in the service book. On the basis of that application the Public Service Commission, by their letter dated April 2, 1951, permitted the respondent to sit for a competitive examination which was to be held on May 1, 1951; but by the same letter the respondent was requested to submit his Matriculation and Degree Certificates. On April 19, 1951, the respondent sent his Matriculation Certificate to the Public Service Commission. That certificate showed, however, that the date of the respondent's birth was December 25, 1924. While sending the certificate to the Public Service Commission the respondent give an explanation that the certificate contained a wrong date of his birth, presumably because the person who got him admitted to school had made a mistake which mistake continued in the school records and eventually crept into the Matriculation Certificate. The Public Service Commission then wrote to the Registrar of the Bombay University, and on hearing from the latter made a report to the State Government by means of a letter dated June 15, 1951. In that letter the Public Service Commission stated:

(3.) The respondent then unsuccessfully appealed to the Rajpramukh and on June 5, 1953, he filed a writ petition in the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad praying that the order of dismissal dated June 6, 1952, and the previous proceedings leading up to the said order be quashed by a writ of certiorari and a writ of mandamus be issued directing the State Government to re-instate the respondent in the post which he held at the time of his dismissal. This writ petition was heard by the High Court and by a judgment dated September 28, 1954, the High Court held that the order of dismissal passed against the respondent was made in violation of the constitutional guarantee contained in Art. 311 (2) and was on that ground void and ineffective. The High Court allowed the application and further directed that the present respondent be forthwith re-instated in service.