S.S. SANDHAWALIA. C. J.

A difference of opinion betwixt the learned Judges constituting the Division Bench has necessitated this reference. Since the divergence of views extended to all points of fact and law (as stands noticed by them in their order no.13 dated the 20th of February, 1984), the Hon'ble Judges did not deem it necessary to formulate the difference specifically.

2. The facts stand already recounted in considerable detail in both of the exhaustively separately recorded judgments. Nevertheless, to maintain the homogeneity of this judgment, it becomes necessary to give the factual matrix thereof. These have been marshalled in so admirable a manner by Uday Sinha, J. that the recapitulation thereof can not be improved upon. Even at some risk of plagiarism I would with to virtually quote them verbatim

“The petitioner has moved this Court for issuance of a writ of mandamus commanding the respondents to correct the date of birth of the petitioner in the Civil List of the Appointment Department so as to accord With the correction in the date of birth of the petitioner corrected by Health Department Notification No.701 (2) 2M 3-20386/69 dated 13- 2-1971 and from disturbing the services of the petitioner. The petitioner has spent her whole life in metropolitan cities. She is not a rustic illiterate Indian worn and who may not know her age. According to her own & averments, she stated her schooling from Girls, Junior High School, Kanpur, Thereafter, she shifted her studies to Delhi where she joined Indraprastha Hindu Girls, High School, declaring her date of birth as 25.8.1925. She passed matriculation examination from the aforesaid High School. Later she joined Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi. There also her date of birth remained 25.8. 1925. She obtained M.B.B.S. degree in 1949 from that College. Thereafter, she joined Bihar State Medical Service in 1952. Her own declaration at tile time of her appointment was that her date of birth was 25.8.1925. In 1962 she obtained M.S. (obstetrics and Gynaccology) degree from Bihar University. In 1969 it dawned upon her that 25.8.1925 as her date of birth recorded in the matriculation certificate and subsequent similar declarations in her own bund and pen were wrong. The petitioner has not enlightened us how she realised that the date of birth me in the matriculation certificate was wrong. Thus in 1969 she filed a representation that the date of birth recorded in her service book be corrected as 25.8.1927 instead of 25.8.1925. The petitioner has not enlightened us the ground and materials on which she filed the representation for correction of her date of birth nor have we been told in what circumstances how and for that respondent the application was entertained more than ten year after her appointment. That has been with held from us. I have great difficulty in accepting that the petitioner is not possessed of a copy of the representation filed by her in 1971. It is, however, useless to probe into those aspects because the files relating to her date of birth in the Secretariat have disappeared. To cut matters short ker representation was accepted and her date of birth was corrected from 25.8.1925 to 25.8.1927 by Notification No. 701 (2)/2M3-20386/69 dated 13.2.1971 addressed to Accountant General, Bihar. The petitioner thus got two years extra lease of tenure on the teaching staff of Patna Medical College.

The aforesaid extra lease in her tenure probably trod on the toes of Dr. D Singh and Dr. Anmola Sinha, teachers in the College. They also, there fore, moved the State Government (or the same favour by correction/alteration of their date or birth all well by two year. Government probably found that the malady or correction or date of birth was getting contagious/infectious and, therefore, took a policy decision by Annexure -A dated 10, 9, 1973 addressed to Accountant General Bihar that the date of birth shall be in accordance with the date of birth recorded in matricul