Point of Law: Service Matter - Court finds that the very foundation of the proceedings against the petitioner and many other constables was some anonymous / pseudonymous application to the effect that, the petitioner, at the time of his appointment, had produced ingenuine school leaving certificate to show wrong date of birth and educational qualification. Such proceeding was initiated against about 140 Armed Constables. About 1600 Constables were recruited in different Groups in the year 1982- 83 and most of them were from other States

JUDGMENT :

A.J. DESAI, J.

1. This appeal is admitted. Mr.Samir Gohil, learned advocate for the respondent waives service of notice of admission. With the consent of the learned advocates appearing for the parties, the matter is taken up for final hearing today.

2. Mr.Gohil has brought to our notice a judgment dated 7.5.2019 passed by coordinate Bench in Letters Patent Appeal No.1076 of 2019 and allied matters and would submit that the case is squarely covered by said decision. Facts of the present case are similar to the facts of that case. We have also gone through judgment dated 7.5.2019 passed in Letters Patent Appeal No.1076 of 2019 and find that the issue involved in this matter is covered by aforesaid decision.

3. This appeal arises out of oral judgment dated 25.02.2019 passed by the learned Single Judge in the Special Civil Application No.6053 of 2017, by which the learned Single Judge allowed the petition of the respondent herein and issued the following directions:

“6. As a result, the petitioner is ordered to be treated as voluntary retired in place of dismissal. The petitioner will be treated to have retired from service accordingly and will be entitled to pension and other pensionary benefits from such date but he will not entitled for any arrears for the period from the date of retirement till the date of present petition is decided. However, it is clarified that the petitioner will be entitled to full pension after the date of present order.

7. The petition stands allowed accordingly. Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms.”

4. The respondent, who was working in the State Reserve Police Group No.12 were constrained to approach this Court challenging his order of dismissal dated 18.4.2011. Such order of dismissal was confirmed by the appellate order dated 29.8.2011.

4.1 It was the case of the petitioner-respondent herein, that he had been recruited and appointed in the year 1983 in the S.R.P Group No.12 at Gandhinagar. On 24.12.2010, show cause notice was issued to the respondent-original petitioner imputing that at the time of his appointment, he had produced ‘Bogus School Leaving Certificate’. On an inquiry being held, the charge was found to be proved and the respondent was dismissed from service by order dated 18.4.2011 and such order is confirmed in appeal. Such order was challenged by the respondent–original petitioner by filing Special Civil Application.

4.2 By judgment and order dated 25.02.2019, the learned Single Judge quashed and set aside the order holding that the petitioner was entitled to be as voluntarily retired in place of dismissal.

4.3 he original petitioner had relied upon order passed in 51 identical cases by learned Single Judge of this Court and one of such Special Civil Application No.12372 of 2012, wherein vide order dated 25.11.2016, learned Single Judge had been pleased to allow the petition. Being aggrieved by the same, the State Authorities have preferred Letters Patent Appeal No.730 of 2017. Division Bench of this Court in Letters Patent Appeal No. 730 of 2017 and allied appeals, on consensus, by an order dated 26.12.2017 remanded the matters to the learned Single Judge for fresh hearing.

4.4 It is pursuant to such remand order, that the petitions were heard afresh and the petitions were allowed vide order dated 13.7.2018 by directing that the petitioners are ordered to be treated as voluntarily retired in place of dismissal. Being aggrieved by judgment passed in Special Civil Application No.12372 of 2012 and allied matters, the State authorities have preferred Letters Patent Appeal No.1076 of 2019 and allied matters, wherein vide order dated 7.5.2019, Division Bench of this Court has partly allowed the appeals preferred by the State authorities.

4.5 It was the case of the petitioner-respondent herein that he had been appointed in the State Reserve Police Force in the year 1983 and after a period of almost more than 20 years, the appellants herein sought to investigate into the genuinenes