K SIVA REDDY Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Seemingly, a simple issue like correction of date of birth in School Leaving Certificate and a consequent change in the Service Register created a highpitual legal battle between two high ranking officials of the State concentrating their energies in the legal battle in stead of preparation of planned strategies for the betterment of the people. There are four writ petitions before this Court praying for issuance of a Writ of certiorari and seeking to quash common order dated 30.11.2012 issued by the A.P. Administrative Tribunal, Hyderabad (referred hereinafter as "the Tribunal") in O.A. Nos. 2066 and 2236 of 2012. W.P. No. 8603/2013 is filed against the order in O.A. No. 2066/2013 by the Government of Andhra Pradesh represented by its Principal Secretary, Engineering Department, Secretariat, Hyderabad; and W.P. No. 8547/2013 is filed against O.A. No. 2236 of 2012, and W.P. No. 39308 of 2012 and W.P. No. 39309 of 2012 are filed by one Sri K. Siva Reddy against the orders in O.A. Nos. 2066 and 2236 of 2012. In these writ petitions M. Gangadharam S/o. M. Krishnaiah, who was the applicant in O.A. No. 2066 of 2012 and Sri S. Rama Murthy S/o. Kondaiah, the applicant in O.A. No. 2236 of 2012 are common respondents. Inasmuch as the challenge is to the common order passed by the Tribunal, at the request of the parties, all the Writ Petitions have been clubbed together and were heard together.

(2.) For the purpose of brevity the parties herein are referred to as in W.P. No. 39308 of 2012 and as the pleadings are more or less being same in all the Writ Petitions, for reference the pleadings in the said affidavit are referred to. A. Siva Reddy, S/o. K. Subba Reddy, who is the petitioner in W.P. No. 39038 of 2008 and W.P. No. 39039 of 2012, is hereinafter referred to as petitioner. The State of Andhra Pradesh is referred to as 1st respondent; M. Gangadharam, S/o. M. Krishanaiah is referred to as 2nd respondent and S. Rama Murthy, who is 1st respondent in W.P. No. 8547/2013 and 2nd respondent in W.P. No. 39309 of 2012, is hereinafter referred to as S. Rama Murthy.

(3.) The brief facts, which has created the litigation, are as follows: Petitioner is an Engineering Graduate and entered into the service as Deputy Executive Engineer (R&B), in 1982 and at the time of entry in the service his date of birth was recorded as 02.05.1954, which in fact was recorded in his School Leaving Certificate. Over the years he had climbed the ladders and reached the position of in-charge Engineer-in-Chief (Admin and NH), R&B Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh. As per averments in the Writ Petition, in and around 1983 he realised that his date of birth is in fact 18.02.1956 and desired to get it corrected as 18.02.1956, as it is the correct date of birth, and approached the Chief Engineer (R&B), Hyderabad through proper channel seeking substitution of the correct date of birth in his Service Register. The Superintending Engineer (R&B), Kadapa through his memo dated 20.04.1983 had informed him that the change of date of birth would be considered on his getting the change effected in SSC certificate by the competent authority. He then approached the District Munsif Court at Banganapalle, his native place, by filing O.S. No. 287 of 1987 and the suit was finally decreed on 23.12.1988 directing the Board of Secondary Education to correct his date of birth as 18.02.1956 in the School Leaving Certificate. Consequent to issuance of G.O. Rt. No. 3, Dated 02.01.1991, finally in his Secondary School Certificate, his date of birth was corrected on 22.01.1991 and since then in his Secondary School Certificate, the date of birth is shown as 18.02.1956. Thereafter, on 16.03.2008, the petitioner approached the 1st respondent with a request to enter his date of birth as 18.02.1956 in his Service Register in place of 02.05.1954. On representation dated 16.03.2008 the 1st respondent issued G.O.Ms. No. 350, Transport, Roads and Buildings (Ser. I) Department, dated 08.12.2008, ordering alteration of his date of birth in Service Register as 18.02.1956 in place of 02.05.1954 by relaxing the Sub Rule (5) of Rule 2 of A.P. Public Employment (Recording and Alteration of Date of Birth) Rules, 1984 (hereinafter referred to as "the Rules"). G.O.Ms. No. 350, dated 08.12.2008 is extracted hereunder: