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1987 Supreme(SC) 550

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
R.S. PATHAK, CJI., RANGANATH MISRA AND K.N. SINGH, JJ.
Civil Appeal No. 3534 of 1986, D/-16-7-1987.
Ranjit Prasad Sinha, Appellant
Versus
State of Bihar and another, Respondents.

Advocates:
B.P.SINGH, GOVIND MUKHOTY, JAYA NARAYAN, R.P.SINGH PAL, RANJIT GHOSAL, S.K.BHATTACHARJEE, U.S.Prasad

Headnote:Constitution of India Article 235–Bihar judicial service–order passed in a disciplinary proceeding–No Appeal lies to the governor against the order–Bihar civil service Rules 1930 does not apply to judicial service–framing of judicial service Rules suggested.

       (Para 5, 6 & 7)

Judgement

PATHAK, CJI. :- This appeal by Special Leave is directed against the Judgment and Order of the High Court of Patna dismissing a Writ Petition filed by the appellant.

2. The appellant is an Additional Subordinate Judge in the Bihar Judicial Service. Disciplinary proceedings were taken against him and ended in an order imposing the punishment of censure, the withholding of annual increments for two years, postponement of his case for promotion for a like period and the denial of emoluments in excess of the subsistence allowance for the period of suspension. The appellant filed a Writ Petition in the High Court challenging the order of punishment on several grounds but did not succeed. He urged also that the appeal filed by him to the Governor against the order of punishment should not have been withheld by the High Court but should have been despatched to the State Government for consideration. The High Court held that no appeal lay to the State Government and therefore rejected the plea.

3. On 16 September, 1986 this Court granted special leave to the appellant confined to the question whether an appeal lay to the Governor against the order of the High Court. That is the sole question for consideration before us.

4. To support his claim to a right of appeal the appellant relies on the Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules 1930. It is pointed out that these Civil Services Rules of 1930 have been kept in force by the State Government by notification No. III/R1/101/63-8051-A dated 3 July, 1963 issued under the proviso to Art. 309 of the Constitution. The submission of the appellant is that the right of appeal is saved by Art. 235 of the Constitution. Article 235 of the Constitution provides that the control over District Courts and Courts subordinate thereto, including the posting and promotion of, and the grant of leave to, persons belonging to the judicial service of the State and holding any post inferior to the post of District Judge shall be vested in the High Court but that nothing in that Article may be construed as taking away from any such person any right of appeal which he may have under the law regulating the conditions of service.

5. The question is whether the appeallant is governed by the Civil Services Rules of 1930, Rule 14 classifies the Public Services in India into a number of categories, and one such category is constituted of the Provincial Services. Rule 18 declares that the Provincial Services shall consist of such services under the administrative control of the Local Government of a Governors Province as the Local Government may from time to time declare, by notification in the local official Gazette, to be included in the Provincial Services of that Province. Rule 49 specifies the penalties which could be imposed upon members of the Services specified in Rule 14. Rule 56 confers a right of appeal on a person belonging to any of the classified Services specified in Rule 14 against an order imposing any of the penalties specified in Rule 49. Rule 57(5) provides :

"A member of a Provincial Service ........... may appeal to the Governor from an order passed by the Local Government".

We enquired of learned counsel for the parties whether a Notification had been issued designating the Subordinate Judicial Service, of which the appellant is a member, as one of the Provincial Services specified in Rule 14. Neither counsel was able to refer to any Notification in that behalf. In the absence of positive material providing that the Subordinate Judicial Service can be regarded as having been brought within the scope of the Civil Services Rules of 1930, it is not open to the appellant to rely on the right of appeal created by those Rules.

6. Our attention has been drawn to the fact that the Civil Services Rules of 1930 were continued with effect from 22 December 1956, by Notification No. III/R1/101/63-8051A dated 3 July, 1963. That does not advance the case of the appellant any further because t



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