SRI JOGINATH PANDA Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Petitioner, who was earlier working as Additional Director of Agriculture (Extension) under opposite party No. 1 and retired from service with effect from 31.05.2003 (A.N.) vide office order dated 31.05.2003 (Annexure -9), had filed the Original Application No. 741 of 2003 before the Orissa Administrative Tribunal, Bhubaneswar, challenging the said order of retirement. Learned Tribunal dismissed the Original Application vide order dated 02.07.2004 with the observation that there is No. merit in the case and the O.A. cannot be entertained. The present writ petition has been filed by the applicant in the O.A. challenging the said judgment -dated 02.07.2004 passed by the Orissa Administrative Tribunal in O.A. No. 741 of 2003.

(2.) The case of the Petitioner, in short is that the Petitioner was first appointed in State Government service vide order dated 24.06.1966 as Agricultural Overseer and joined in the Office of the Block Development Officer, Bhanjanagar on 05.07.1996. His service book was opened on 21. 09.1966. In the service book, his date of birth was recorded as 21.10.1945. Even though his date of birth as recorded in his Service Book was 21.10.1945, the Office Order dated 31.05.2003 (Annexure -9) was passed by the order of the State Government to retire him from Government service with immediate effect, i.e. on 31.05.2003 (A.N.), on the allegation that he has over stayed in service as per the date of birth recorded in his High School Certificate issued by the Board of Secondary Education, Orissa, Cuttack as 21.04.1943, ignoring the date of birth as recorded in his service book. Hence the Petitioner approached Orissa Administrative Tribunal, for redressal of his grievances, challenging the order of such retirement.

(3.) Mr. Panda, learned Counsel for the Petitioner submitted that the office order dated 31.05.2003 retiring the Petitioner from government service prematurely with effect from that date, basing on the date of birth recorded in the matriculation certificate, is completely illegal and unjust. In view of the settled principle of law, the Petitioner ought to have retired from Government service on 31.10.2003 on the basis of his date of birth as recorded in his service book, since the date of birth once recorded in the service book can never be changed/altered under the provisions of the rules and executive instructions in force. As because the date of birth of the Petitioner recorded in his High School certificate as 21.04.1943 was not correct, the Petitioner while entering into/joining the Government service, submitted an affidavit duly sworn by his father to the effect that the date of birth of the Petitioner is 21.10.1945 as per his Horoscope, before the Block Development Officer, Bhanjanagar and accordingly on the basis of such affidavit, his date of birth had been recorded in the service book as 21.10.1945, which is his actual date of birth. The father of the Petitioner had also applied to the Board of Secondary Education, Orissa for correction of the date of birth of the applicant/ Petitioner as 21.10.1945. Neither the investigation report with regard to the date of birth of the Petitioner as 21.04.1943 was supplied to him, nor he was given an opportunity to file his show cause to justify his claim that his date of birth is 21.10.1945 and as such the order of his retirement from Government service prematurely with effect from 31.05.2003 basing on the date of birth recorded In the matriculation certificate, is completely unjust and illegal. Hence both the orders, i.e. order dated 31.05.2003 (Annexure -9) as well the order of the Tribunal dated 02.07.2004 passed in O.A. No. 741 of 2003 are completely unjust and illegal and hence are liable to be quashed.