LODHA, J—The respondent-plaintiff was a Constable in the Police Department and was deputed at the Police Out-post, Soorsagar in the month of May 1959. He was dismissed from service by Shri P.C. Mishra, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Jodhpur on 7-4-1970. The respondent filed appeal from the order of dismissal but his appeal was dismissed by the Inspector General of Police, Rajasthan on 29.12.1960. It appears that the respondent also made grievance against his order of dismissal to the Government of Rajasthan but was informed by the Secretary, Home Department, Government of Rajasthan vide his letter dated 8-5-1963, that his appeal had rightly been dismissed by the Inspector General of Police. After having received the aforesaid letter from the Government of Rajasthan the plaintiff served a notice under S. 80 C.P.C. and filed the present suit in forma pauperis in the court of civil Judge, Jodhpur on 11.12.63 praying that the order of dismissal passed against the respondent be set aside and he may be awarded a decree for Rs. 2500/ on account of arrears of salary inclusive of dearness allowance up to the date of suit and a further sum of Rs. 1000/- on account of damages for wrongful dismissal. The suit was resisted by the Government of Rajasthan inter alia on the ground that the impugned order of dismissal passed against the plaintiff was in accordance with law.

2. After recording the evidence produced by the parties the learned civil Judge, Jodhpur dismissed the suit by his judgment dated 3-9-1966. Dissatisfied with the judgment and decree by the trial court the plaintiff filed appeal in the Court of District Judge, Jodhpur who by his Judgment dated 20-5-1969 allowed the plaintiffs appeal, set aside the judgment and decree by the trial court, and decreed the plaintiffs suit for declaration that the order of dismissal passed against him on 7.4.1960 and confirmed in appeal by the Inspector General of Police on 29.12.1960 was illegal and void. He also awarded a sum of Rs.2500/- to the plaintiff on account of arrears of salary. The claim for Rs. 1000/- on account of damages was, however, disallowed. Aggrieved by the judgment and decree awarded by the learned District Judge, Jodhpur the State of Rajasthan has filed this second appeal.

3. The only ground on which the learned District Judge has granted relief to the plaintiff-respondent is that the authority who passed the order of dismissal against the respondent was subordinate to the authority by whom the respondent was appointed. Thus according to the learned District Judge there was a clear contravention of the provisions of Art. 311(1) of the Constitution, and consequently he held the order of dismissal to be illegal and void.

4. Learned counsel for the appellant has urged that Shri P. C. Mishra who held the substantive post of Assistant Supdt. of Police was Officiating Superintendent of Police at the time when he passed the order of dismissal and since the Superintendent of Police was appointing authority Shri P. C. Mishra cannot be said to be an authority subordinate to the Superintendent of Police by whom the respondent was appointed, but was in equal rank to him. In this connection it may be relevant to state that the plaintiff had come forward with a case that he was appointed by the Inspector General of Police of the former State of Jodhpur in the year 1943 and could have only been dismissed by an authority equal in rank to the Inspector General of Police. The learned District Judge found that the appellant has failed to prove that he was appointed by the Inspector General of Police of the former State of Jodhpur. He has further found that the appellant was appointed afresh after the formation of the present State of Rajasthan by Shri Tarachand, Superintendent of Police, and that in the integrated set up the Superintendent of Police was the authority competent to appoint Constables in the Police Department. In this view of the matter the learned District Judge held that the

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