Judgment

VARADARAJAN, J.:- In this appeal by special leave the respondent Sunder Dass appears in person. The appeal by the Divisional Personnel Officer, Western Railway, Kota is against the judgment of Dwarkaprasad, J. of the Rajasthan High Court at Jaipur in Civil Revns. Nos. 63 and 158 of 1973. The learned Judge allowed Civil Revision No. 63 of 1973 filed by Sunder Dass and dismissed Civil Revn. No. 158 of 1973 filed by the Divisional Personnel Officer with costs in both.

2. The two revision petitions were filed against the order dated 18-9-1972 passed by the learned District Judge, Kota under the Payment of Wages Act (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"). The respondent filed petitions under S. 15 (2) of the Act before the authority under the Act, the Special Judicial (Railways) Magistrate, Kota who held by his order dated 30-10-1967 that the respondent is entitled to get his salary for the period from 17-2-1949 to 14-5-1949 after adjustment of any amount which might have been paid to him for that period. Both parties filed appeals against that order before the District Judge, Kota who by order dated 18-9-1972 held that the respondent should have been paid wages for the period of six months prior to 25-3-1963, the date of his application under the Act and also for a period of six months in respect of each one of his subsequent seven applications filed under the Act. The learned District Judge directed the authority under the Act to calculate the amount of salary and dearness allowance payable to the respondent as per his direction on the basis of the respondents basic salary as on 14-5-1949, the date of his original dismissal from service, after deducting the usual Provident Fund deduction and other permissible deductions, if any. Both parties filed revision petitions in the High Court against the order of the learned District Judge.

3. The respondent was employed as an Assistant Sub-Divisional Clerk at Sukkar in the Karachi Division of the North Western Railway. While he was working in that capacity at Nawabshah, he was discharged from service by order dated 12-4-1944 issued by the Divisional Engineer. The respondent instituted a suit in the Court of the Judicial Commissioner, Karachi for declaration that the order of discharge was invalid. During the pendency of that suit there was partition of India and he migrated to India and reported for duty to the Transfer Officer (India) at Ambala Cantonment on 8-1-1948. On the basis of the respondents declaration, he was taken as a Clerk in the former B.B. & C.I. Railway, which eventually become the Western Railway. But when the fact that the respondent had already been discharged from railway service on 12-4-1944 before the partition of India took place came to light, the respondent was suspended from service on 17-2-1949 and a chargesheet was issued to him by the Chief Engineer of the Railway for the misconduct of concealment of the order of discharge from service and he was dismissed from service on 14-5-1949 in pursuance of the finding of guilt recorded in the inquiry. The respondents appeal against the order of discharge was dismissed by the General Manager of the Railway. The respondent thereafter filed a suit on 10-1-1950 for declaration that the order of discharge was void and obtained decree in the trial Court, which was modified by the District Judge on appeal. Both parties filed Second Appeals in the High Court, which dismissed the same on 6-3-1963 by holding that the respondent is entitled to a declaration that the order of his dismissal from service dated 14-5-1949 is illegal on the ground that there was breach of the principles of natural justice and that it was, however, open to the Railway Administration to take fresh disciplinary proceedings against him from the stage at which the illegality crept in.

4. Subsequently, the Chief Engineer, Western Railway started fresh disciplinary proceedings against. the respondent and issued a fresh charge-sheet with a statement of