TARUN AGARWALA, J.

( 1 ) THE petitioners father was working as a Constable. On 30. 12. 1982 an F. I. R. was lodged stating therein that the petitioners father was missing, An investigation was made and the police submitted a report before the competent court, stating therein that the petitioners father is missing. The said report was eventually accepted by the Court wherein the father of the petitioner was declared missing. The matter did not end here. The petitioners mother filed original Suit No. 49 of 1992 before the court of Munsif. The suit was eventually decreed by a judgment dated 24. 4. 1992 and the Court declared that the petitioners father was dead.

( 2 ) THE petitioners date of birth is 1. 6. 1979. Upon reaching the age of 18 years, the petitioner moved an application for an appointment on compassionate ground. Subsequently, in the year 1999, another application was moved. The petitioners request for an employment was rejected by an order dated 28. 1. 2000. Consequently, the present petition has been filed for the quashing of the order dated 28. 1. 2000 and for issuance of a direction to the respondents commanding them to appoint the petitioner on compassionate ground under the Dying-in-Harness Rules, 1974.

( 3 ) A perusal of the impugned order indicates that the petitioners application had been rejected on the ground that the Dying-in-Harness Rules, 1974, was not applicable to the heirs of missing persons and therefore, the petitioner could not be given an employment on compassionate ground.

( 4 ) HEARD learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.

( 5 ) BEFORE proceeding any further, it would be appropriate to quote Rule 5 of the dying-in-Harness Rules, 1974.

"recruitment of a member of the family of the deceased.-5 (1) In case a Government servant dies-in-harness after the commencement of these rules and the spouse of the deceased Government servant is not already employed under the Central government or a State Government or a Corporation owned or controlled by the Central government or a State Government, one member of his family who is not already employed under the Central Government or a State Government or a Corporation owned or controlled by the Central Government or a State Government shall, on making an application for the purposes, be given a suitable employment in Government service on a post except the post which is within the purview of the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission, in relaxation of the normal recruitment rules if such person-

(i) fulfils the educational qualifications prescribed for the post, (ii) is otherwise qualified for Government service, and, (iii) makes the application for employment within five years from the date of the death of the government servant : provided that where the State Government is satisfied that the time limit fixed for making the application for employment causes undue hardship in any particular case, it may dispense with or relax the requirement, as it may consider necessary for dealing with the case in a just and equitable manner. (2) As far as possible, such an employment should be given in the same department in which the deceased Government servant was employed prior to his death. "

( 6 ) FROM a perusal of the above rule, it is clear that where a Government servant dies-in-harness, a member of his family could be given an employment under the Dying-in-Harness Rules.

( 7 ) THE question which arises for consideration is whether the Rules of 1974 contemplate a death of a particular kind in order to benefit the heirs or whether all kinds of death could be included under the Dying-in-Harness Rules, 1974.

( 8 ) IT may be stated here that a human being can die under various circumstances, for example, a person may die on account of natural causes or on account of an accident or that the person may commit suicide, or die in war, or in anti-terrorist activities, or there may be a presumptive death, namely, that a person is missing since long and therefore,

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