PUNJAB & HARYANA HIGH COURT
Rakesh Kumar Jain, J.
Pervinder Kumar
Versus
Secretary, Central Board Of Secondary Education
Decided On : MAY 8, 2008
Date of Birth Correction - Civil Law - Rule 69.2 of the Examination Bye-laws - [69.2(i), 69.2(ii), 69.2(iii), 69.2(iv)] - The court discussed the provisions of Rule 69.2 of the Examination Bye-laws, which govern the change/correction in date of birth recorded in the Board's records. The court emphasized that even if a remedy as per the administrative law/rules has become barred by limitation, a legal remedy is available to the aggrieved person under the civil law before a civil court. The court also highlighted that if there is no allegation of fraud or misrepresentation, the prayer for correction in date of birth should not be declined.
Fact of the Case:
The plaintiff filed a suit to correct his date of birth mentioned in his Matriculation Certificate, which was wrongly recorded as 1.11.1985 instead of 5.5.1980. The defendants declined the correction citing Rule 69.2 of the Examination Bye-laws.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the plaintiff's actual date of birth was 5.5.1980, as evidenced by the school leaving certificate and the death certificate of his father. The suit was dismissed on the grounds of limitation and lack of territorial jurisdiction.
Issues: 1. Correctness of the impugned letter dated 1.5.2002 2. Time-barred nature of the suit 3. Territorial jurisdiction of the court 4. Relief
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that a legal remedy is available under civil law even if the administrative law remedy is barred by limitation. It also emphasized that if there is no fraud or misrepresentation, the prayer for correction in date of birth should not be declined.
Final Decision: The court allowed the appeal, set aside the judgment and decree of the lower courts, and decreed the plaintiff's suit for correction of date of birth.
Rakesh Kumar Jain, J.
1. The plaintiff is in Second Appeal. In brief, the facts of the case as per the plaint, are that the plaintiff was born on 5.5.1980. He took admission in Government Primary School, Morkheri at the age of six years. He studied there for more than three years w.e.f. 28.4.1986 to 28.09.1989 and his date of birth was rightly mentioned in the Migration Certificate issued by the school. Thereafter, the plaintiff had taken admission in Malviya Shiksha Sadan, Ashok Vihar, Sonepat. Since he was weak in studies, therefore, the School gave him admission in K.G. Class where he studied uptil the year 1999 and passed 10th Class. But due to inadvertence, his date of birth was wrongly mentioned in the Matriculation Certificate as 1.11.1985 instead of 5.5.1980. According to the plaintiff, he immediately filed an application to the defendant No. 3 who is the principal of the school and also went to the C.B.S.E. Centre at Chandigarh (defendant No. 1) and requested them for the correction of his date of birth and supplied death certificate of his father and his migration certificate to them. The plaintiff further alleged in the plaint that he took admission in 10+1 Class in Saini Senior Secondary School. Prem Nagar, Rohtak, which is affiliated to Haryana Board and had passed his 10+1 and 10+2 Class from that School. After a continuous enquiry about the correction in his date of birth, he again sent an application dated 19.03.2002 for the correction but defendant No. 3 did not take any action. On the contrary, defendant No. 2, vide letter dated 1.5.2002 had declined to correct the date of birth of the plaintiff on the ground that the correction can only be done within two years. This letter/order of rejection dated 1.5.2002 has been challenged in the present case by the plaintiff, alleging the following grounds:
(i) That the defendants have erred in not taking into consideration the fact that if the date of birth as mentioned in Matriculation Certificate i.e. 1.11.1985 is right then the plaintiff took admission in Government Primary School, Morkheri on 28.04.1986, then it is unbelievable that how an infant of 6 months took admission in school.
(ii) That the defendants have erred in not considering the fact that in the migration certificate, date of birth of plaintiff is rightly mentioned as 5.5.1980 as the plaintiff took admission in this school at about the age of 6 years.
(iii) That the defendants have also erred in not considering the fact that the father of the plaintiff late Sh. Prem Chand died on 13.4.1983 then if the date of birth as mentioned in Matriculate Certificate is taken to be correct i.e. 1.11.1985, then it is not at all possible because it means the plaintiff took birth after about 2 years and 7 months of the death of his father, a totally unbelievable and highly irrelevant preposition.
(iv) That the defendant No. 2 has also erred in not considering the fact that the defendant No. 3 has even uptil now not sent the previous application and the last one to it (defendant No. 1) for correction of date of birth of the plaintiff as it is the fault of defendant No. 3 due to which wrong date of birth has been got mentioned in the Matriculation Certificate.
(v) That the defendants have also erred in not considering the fact that if the date of birth of the plaintiff is not corrected, then he will suffer irreparable loses and humiliation in the society and also in the field of education etc.
2. On notice, defendants No. 1 and 2 filed a joint written statement. The suit of the plaintiff was contested on the ground of limitation, averring that the cause of action had accrued to the plaintiff in June, 1999 but the suit has been filed in August 2002 after more than three years, the Court at Rohtak had no territorial jurisdiction as the C.B.S.E. is having its Head Office at New Delhi and as per the Rule 4 of the Examination Bye-laws, only the Courts at New Delhi has the jurisdiction and also on the ground that the
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