JUDGMENT

RAY, J.:— This appeal on special leave is against the judgment and order passed by the High Court of Punjab & Haryana in Regular Second Appeal No. 307 of 1985 whereby the High Court upheld the order of termination of services of the appellant made on November 17, 1980 passed by the respondent No. 2, the Director of Food and Supplies and Deputy Secretary to Government of Haryana, Chandigarh.

2. The salient facts that gave rise to the instant appeal are as follows :-

The appellant was appointed as Sub-Inspector, Food and Supplies in the Department of Food and Supplies by the Respondent No. 2 by order dated April 13, 1975 on ad hoc basis against the ex-servicemen quota. As per the service rules the terms and conditions of the said appointment are as hereunder:-

"1) The post is purely temporary. Your appointment is purely on ad hoc basis and shall not exceed six months. Your services are liable to be terminated at any time during this period without any notice and without assigning any reason. Your services are also liable to be terminated at any time without notice on arrival of regular candidates from the Haryana Subordinate Services Selection Board."

3. The appellant had been continuing in the said post of Sub-Inspector without any break till November 17, 1980 i.e..the date of termination of his services. The appellant, however, was served with an order of suspension made by respondent No. 2 on April 15, 1980 in view of the criminal proceedings pending against the appellant u/s. 420 of the Indian Penal Code during the pendency of which the order of termination was made on November 17, 1980. The said criminal proceeding being Criminal Case No. 1413 of 1981 was decided on October 21, 1981 wherein he has been acquitted of the said charge. The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Narnaul had found that :

"............. Babu Ram accused was not present at the spot and he had no role to play in the distribution of the cement. The APP could not point out even a single factor from the file by which the participation of this accused can be said to have been proved by the prosecution. As such accused, Babu Ram cannot be held guilty of the offence charged and he is acquitted of the same."

4. The plaintiff-appellant immediately on receiving the order of termination after giving the requisite notice brought an action being Civil Suit No. 453 of 1881 in the Court of Senior Sub Judge, Narnaul praying for a declaration to the effect that the order of suspension dated 15-4-1980 and the order of termination dated 17-11-1980 passed by the respondent No. 2 were illegal, wrong, arbitrary and without jurisdiction and the appellant is entitled to reinstatement with effect from the date of his suspension and so further entitled to be regularised and to all the benefits of the service. It had been stated in the pleadings of the appellant that a notification dated 1st January, 1980 issued by the Chief Secretary to the Government of Haryana addressed to all the Heads of the Departments vide memo No. G.S.R./ Const./ Art.309/80 stating that such ad hoc employees who hokd the class III posts for a minimum period of two years on 31-12-1979 are to be regularised if they fulfil the following conditions:-

(a) Only such ad hoc employees as have completed a minimum of two years service on 31-12-1979 should be made regular. However, break in service rendered on ad hoe basis up to a period of one month may be condoned but break occurring because the concerned employee had left service of his own volition or where the ad hoc appointment was against a post/vacancy for which no regular recruitment was required/intended to be made, i.e. leave arrangements or filling up of other short-time vacancies may not be condoned.

(b) Only such ad hoc employees as have been recruited through the Employment Exchange should be made regular.

(c) The work and conduct of the ad hoc employees proposed to be regularised should be of an overall good category.

The plaintiff-appellant plead