Judgment

PALEKAR, J.:- This appeal arises out of a certificate granted by the High Court of Punjab under Art. 133 (1)(c) of the Constitution. The appellant graduated from the College of Agriculture at Lyallpur with high academic distinctions in the year 1935. He then entered the service of the then Punjab Government as an Overseer of Gardens. After the partition in 1947, he opted for service in India and entered the service of the Government of East Punjab. In 1950 the Union Public Service Commission selected him for appointment to the post of Assistant Superintendent of Archaeological Gardens at Delhi and he joined that post with the consent of the East Punjab Government. In 1951 he proceeded abroad for further studies in U.S.A. and England and obtained high qualifications in Landscape Architecture. While he was still abroad, the Punjab Government advertised a post of Landscape Architect in the Capital Project Administration in the grade of Rupees 625-40-1025/50-1275. The appellant having applied for the same, was selected for the appointment. He could not howeve, take charge of the post. He returned to India in 1953 and found that the post advertised had already been filed.

2. On 25-6-1954 the Punjab Government through the Punjab Public Service Commission again advertised for the post of Landscape Architect in the Capital Project Administration, Chandigarh on the same post and was selected by the Punjab Public Service Commission. The terms of appointment which the appellant accepted were as follows:

(1) The post belongs to provincial service Class I and is temporarily sanctioned upto 28-2-1955 for the present but is likely to continue thereafter. It is non-pensionable but the permanent Government servant if appointed to it will be allowed to retain his pensionary status. The incumbent of the post will be eligible to subscribe to the General Provident Fund according to the rules of that fund.

(2) The period of probation will be six months for candidates already in service and one year for direct recruits. The appointment can be terminated by three months notice on either side, except in the case of misconduct, inefficiency, neglect or failure of duty, when the services will be terminated without notice."

3. The appellant accepted this post on a starting salary of Rs.825/- per month and the latter of appointment was issued to him on October 21, 1954. The appellant joined the post.

4. As already stated that the post was a temporary post sanctioned upto 28-2-1955 but its tenure was extended from time to time upto 28-2-1958. After that, the post was extended monthly upto 4-11-1958 when the post was discontinued. On the discontinuance of that post, the appellant was reverted to the non-Gazetted post of Agriculture Inspector at Panipat in the scale of Rs.100-10-300/- which was the post permanently held by him and over which he had his lien. The appellant complained that he was reduced to a lower rank in violation of the protection of Article 311(2) of the Constitution and applied to the High Court of Punjab for a writ of mandamus directing the State Government to review the post of Landscape Architect in the Department of Capital Project and to restore the appellant to it on the old conditions of service.

5. The writ petition was heard by Grover, J. as he then was, who finding no substance in the petition, dismissed the same on 7-9-1961. The appellant then filed a Letters Patent Appeal which was heard by a bench of that court. That appeal was also dismissed on 27-5-1963. On a certificate under Article 133(1)(c) the present appeal has been filed in this court.

6. The appellant s attack on the order of reversion was two-fold - (1) that he was reduced in rank from a Class I post to a Class III post in violation of the protection given by Article 311 of the Constitution; (2) that the order to discontinue to post of Landscape Architect was a dishonest device to get rid of the appellant, and being dishonest, was illegal. In other words, the act