SURINDER KUMAR SETIA Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner has approached this Court praying for quashing of the order dated 12.12.2001 (Annexure P-12) whereby the application of the petitioner for correction of date of birth stands rejected. Challenge is also laid to the order dated 14.10.2009 (Annexure P-14) passed by the respondents dismissing his so-called appeal against the rejection order dated 12.12.2010 of his representation and order dated 7.12.2009 (Annexure P-17) whereby the review application preferred by the petitioner stands dismissed.

(2.) Briefly the facts of the case are that the petitioner after qualifying the competitive examination, joined Haryana Civil Services (Executive Branch) on 25.6.1997. Petitioner contends that he was born on 11.1.1959 in village Birabadi, District Fatehabad, Haryana. Somehow in the matriculation certificate, date of birth of the petitioner was got recorded by his father as 11.1.1958. This error remained unnoticed till he joined service with the State of Haryana. On his birthday on 11.1.1999, his father noticed from a Hundi (Memoir) written by his father on the occasion of the name ceremony on 60th day of the birth of the petitioner that the date of birth of the petitioner was in fact 11.1.1959. He verified this fact from the Registrar, Births and Deaths, Hisar and found the same to be correct. He accordingly submitted an application to the respondents dated 17.5.1999, through proper channel, for correction of his date of birth under Rule 7.3 read with Annexure A of the Punjab Civil Service Rules Vol.-I Part I (as applicable to State of Haryana) (hereinafter referred to as PCS Rules). This rule permits a government employee to get his date of birth corrected within 2 years from the date of his entry into government service.

(3.) On receipt of this application, respondents in accordance with Rule 7.3 of the PCS Rules, enquired into the matter and got it verified from different Authorities. Registrar, Births and Deaths informed vide letter dated 29.9.1999 that the documents submitted by the petitioner are in consonance with the records. Superintendent of Police also verified the correctness of the factum of his date of birth being 11.1.1959 on the basis of the entry made in the book of chowkidar of the village. Despite there being supportive evidence, apart from the birth entries of the brothers and sisters born of the parentage of the petitioner, the claim of the petitioner for correction of date of birth was rejected vide order dated 12.12.2001 (Annexure P-12) by the Chief Secretary to the Government of Haryana on the ground that he had ren- dered government service in various departments/ banks and on no occasion a request was made by him for correction in his date of birth and, therefore, the period has to be taken from the date of his initial appointment i.e. June 1980 and, therefore, the present application which is moved after about 18 years of service, would be beyond the scope of Rule 7.3 of the PCS Rules.