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IN THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
MARLI VANKUNG, J.
Vimal Goswami S/o Late H.G.Goswami – Appellant
Versus
The Union Of India And 2 Ors. – Respondent
WP(C) 77 of 2022
Decided on : 29-10-2024
Registration of Births & Deaths Act, 1969 - Section 15 - Writ petition for correction of date of birth in service record - Petitioner sought correction from 31.08.1964 to 31.08.1966 based on Birth Certificate issued on 04.02.1992 - Previous representations rejected without reasons - Court found genuine mistake in School Leaving Certificate - Notification dated 30.11.1979 allows correction within five years if no ineligibility arises - Court allowed petition and directed reinstatement. (Paras 2, 4, 12, 17, 18)
Facts of the case:
The petitioner filed a writ petition to correct his date of birth in service records, claiming it was wrongly recorded due to a bona fide mistake in his School Leaving Certificate. He provided a Birth Certificate issued in 1992, showing his correct date of birth as 31.08.1966.
Findings of Court:
The Court found that the delay in processing the petitioner's request was due to the respondent's late responses and that the petitioner acted within the stipulated time frame for correction.
Issues: The main issues were whether the petitioner's date of birth could be corrected and if the delay in application affected his eligibility for examinations.
Ratio Decidendi: The Court ruled that the petitioner's request for correction was valid as it was made within the stipulated time and did not affect his eligibility for examinations, emphasizing the importance of the Birth Certificate as evidence of the correct date of birth.
Result: Writ Petition allowed; date of birth corrected to 31.08.1966.
JUDGMENT :
Heard Mr. I. Bam, learned counsel for the petitioner along with Mr. M. Kato, learned DySGI for the respondents.
2. The petitioner has filed the instant writ petition, praying for a direction to make the necessary correction in the service record, rectifying his date of birth, which was wrongly recorded as 31.08.1964, while his correct date of birth is 31.08.1966.
3. The case of the petitioner is that in accordance with the notification dated 30.11.1979 issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, DP&AR, which was reiterated in the Office Memorandum dated 01.05.1993 and 16.12.2014 issued by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Personnel & Training, the petitioner had made a representation for correction in his service record on the wrong date of birth, within 2 (two) years from his joining of service, by submitting his Birth Certificate, issued on 04.02.1992 by the Executive Officer, Nagar Palika, Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh, wherein his correct Date of Birth was recorded as 31.08.1966. The petitioner filed his first representation on 30.04.1992, which was rejected mechanically by the respondent authority on 14.12.1992, without giving any reasons, but this was never communicated to the petitioner till December 1994.
The petitioner had therefore made fresh representation dated 10.12.1994, which was rejected and communicated to the petitioner only on 28.07.2018. Thereafter, the petitioner again filed a representation dated 10.09.2018, through proper channel and despite the recommendations for consideration of his representation, no final decision was taken by the appropriate authority. The petitioner then submitted another representation dated 04.10.2019. However, on still receiving no response from the concerned authority, he filed the instant writ petition.
During the pendency of the writ petition, the representations of the petitioner was disposed of and rejected by the respondents vide their letter dated 05.04.2023, wherein the petitioner had filed I.A.(C) No. 102(AP)/2024 bringing this fact to the notice of the Court and prayed for setting aside the said letter dated 05.04.2023.
4. Mr. I. Bam, learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that as per the notification dated 30.11.1979, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, the petitioner had applied for the alteration of his date of birth to the appropriate authority within five years of his entry into Government service. That the wrong entry was due to a genuine bona fide mistake made in his School Leaving Certificate and that the date of birth so altered from 31.08.1964 to 31.08.1966 would not make him ineligible to appear for the matriculation examination or the Union Public Service examination in which he had appeared or for entry into Government service on the date on which he first appeared at such examination or on the date on which he entered Government service.
5. The learned counsel submitted that as per the correct date of birth, the petitioner would have been 13 (thirteen) years of age when he passed his matriculation, but this would not debar him from sitting for his examination. In support of his point, the learned counsel for the petitioner has relied on the judgment in High School & Ors. Vs. Gopal Narain Singh, reported in AIR 1973 ALL 345, wherein, the Court had set aside the directive of the State Government prescribing a minimum age for a student to receive Higher Secondary Education.
He further submitted that when the petitioner was issued his appointment letter on 05.03.1990 he was 24 years of age and was thus eligible to appear in the UPSC examination.
6. The learned counsel for the petitioner also submitted that the parents of the petitioner were uneducated and had not taken the necessary steps for correction of his date of birth wrongly recorded in his School Leaving Certificate since they did not have the resources to approach the Court for making such necessary corr
A government servant's date of birth can be corrected if the request is made within five years and does not affect eligibility for examinations, supported by a valid Birth Certificate.
Delay in seeking correction of date of birth and lack of conclusive proof can justify rejection of such requests by employment authorities.
Requests for correction of date of birth in service records made at the end of service are not sustainable unless made within prescribed time limits and with clear evidence of error.
Applications for correction of date of birth in service records must be timely; delay can invalidate claims, even with evidence.
If there is good evidence to establish that recorded date of birth is erroneous, correction cannot be claimed as a matter of right.
A writ petition is not maintainable for the correction of a date of birth in a service record if the petitioner fails to approach the court within a reasonable time and lacks unimpeachable evidence t....
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