( 1 ) THE plaintiff Sudhir Ranjan Halder, who is the appellant before us, obtained an appointment as a lower division clerk, under the then Government of Bengal, on April 15, 1944. At the time material to the suit, out of which this appeal arises, however he was serving as a Sub-Inspector of Rationing, under the Rationing Officer, Bhowanipur Sub-Area, Calcutta.

( 2 ) ON October 31, 1947, the residence of the plaintiff at 13a, Gangaprosad Mukherjee Road, Bhowanipur was searched by the men of the Enforcement Department, who seized a number of Ration Cards and cloth folders allegedly from the possession of the plaintiff. Thereupon, the plaintiff was arrested by the Police on the ground of wrongful and illegal possession of the said cloth folders and ration cards.

( 3 ) BY an order. Exhibit 2 (a), dated November 4, 1947, the Joint Controller of Rationing suspended the plaintiff, with effect from the date of the order, on the ground of his arrest by the Enforcement Branch. The aforesaid order was forwarded to the plaintiff on November 5, 1947, and was said to have been received by him on November 8, 1947.

( 4 ) THE plaintiff was thereafter charged with having contravene