The High Court's jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution extends only to persons or authorities who are within the limits of its territorial jurisdiction.

( 1 ) THIS is an application directed against an order dated 20-1-1952 passed by the officiating Director-General of Observatories, whereby the petitioner has been ordered to retire from service on 20-1-1952, on attaining the age of 55 years. According to the petitioner, he is entitled to continue in service until he has attained the age of 60 years.

( 2 ) THE facts are briefly as follows: The petitioner joined Government service in 1929, at Karachi Thereafter he continued in such service, obtained promotions in his permanent cadre as well as officiated in higher posts. In 1943. he was transferred to the office of the Director Regional Meteorological Centre, Alipore, Calcutta. In 1947, the petitioner elected to accept the scale of pay prescribed by the Central Civil Services (Revision of pay) Rules 1947, and his post came to be known as that of a 'scientific Assistant'.

( 3 ) ON or about 21-11-1950, the petitioner was transferred to a temporary post under the Damodar Valley Corporation as a Senior Accountant. On or about 13-7-1951, it was communicated to him that although by the letter of the Ministry of Communications No. 1-M (1)/50 dated 29-6-1950 the post of a Scientific Assistant was declared to toe a non-ministerial one, as a personal concession, the petitioner would be continued to be treated as a ministerial servant for the purposes Of F. R. 56.

( 4 ) UNDER F. R. 56, a non-ministerial Government Servant must retire at the age of 55 except in the special circumstances mentioned therein. A ministerial Government servant should ordinarily be retained until the age of 60 if he continues to be efficient, but may be required to retire at the age of 55 years. To put it more simply, a, ministerial government servant may be compelled to retire at the age of 55, if he does not continue to be efficient.

( 5 ) 'ministerial Servant' has been defined (F. R. 9 (17) Section III Ch. II) to mean a Government servant of a subordinate service whose duties are entirely clerical, and any other class of servant specially defined as such by general or special artier of a local Government. I have the gravest doubt whether it was open to the Government to declare a post to be non-ministerial and yet continue to treat a particular incumbent as occupying a ministerial post. I have asked Mr. Burman to show me any rule which authorised Government to do so, but he could do no better than point out C. S. (C. C. A.) Rules 8-9. In my opinion, these rules promulgated in 1930 do not affect the question At all.

( 6 ) HOWEVER, for the purposes of this application I shall proceed upon the footing that the petitioner was a ministerial government servant. On or about 5-12-1951, a charge-sheet was served upon the petitioner by the opposite party 1, through the Director, Regional Meteorological Centre Alipore, Calcutta to show cause why he should not be removed from service upon his attaining the age of 55 years on 19-1-1952. The charge-sheet contained 5 charges. The gravamen of the charges seems to be that he was constantly preoccupied with grievances real or imaginary and his work had deteriorated and he had ceased to be efficient. It was charged that not only was he discharging his duties inefficiently but his attitude was affecting the morale and efficiency of the office in which he worked. He was asked to submit his written statement within 15 days and also to intimate whether he wished to be heard in person.

( 7 ) ON or about 10-12-1951 the petitioner wrote a letter asking about various particulars required by him to make a statement and enquiring about the constitution of the tribunal. He also intimated that he would also like to be heard in person. On 15-12-1951 he was informed that it was not proposed to set up any special tribunal as the normal procedure would be followed as required under the provisions of Article 311 (2) of the Constitution read with Rule 55 of C. S. (C. C. A.) and that the petitioner would be given normal facilities