Prem Sagar Singla vs State of Punjab and Others

M.M. Kumar, J.—The instant writ petition challenges vires of Rule 3.26 (d) of the Punjab Civil Service Rules 1953 Volume 1 Part 1 ( in short ''the Rules'') and Explanation below the aforesaid rule on the ground that rule is arbitrary and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution. According to the rule, a person born on 1st January of the year is to retire on the afternoon of last day of the preceding month. According to the learned Counsel for the Petitioner, had the Petitioner born on 2nd January, he would have been allowed to serve upto 31st January of the year of retirement but on account of the Explanation below Rule 3.26(d), he is likely to retire on 31.12.2010 because his date of birth is 1.1.1953.

Having heard learned Counsel for the Petitioner, we are of the considered view that neither Rule nor the Explanation below the said rule suffers from any legal infirmity warranting interference of this Court. Rule 3.26(d) along with Explanation below Clause (d) are reproduced as under:

"3.26". (a) Except as provided in other clauses of this rule, the date of retirement of a Government employee other than a class IV Government employee, is the date on which he attains the age of {58} years. He must not be retained in service after the age of retirement, except in exceptional circumstances with the sanction the competent authority on public grounds, which must be recorded in writing.

(d) Notwithstanding anything in this rule, a Government employee whose date of birth falls on any day of month other than the first of that month, shall on attaining the age of superannuation determined in accordance with the provision of Clause (a) and (b) or (c) as the case may be, retire on the last day of that month, which will be a working day.

Explanation-

A Government employee whose date of birth is the first of month shall retire on the afternoon of the last day of the proceedings month.

A perusal of the aforesaid rule shows that a government employee whose date of birth is first of the month shall retire on the afternoon of the last day of the preceding month. The Rule is universally applicable to all the govt. servants and it does not cause any discrimination by creating an artificial class of the employees. In any case an employee born on January 1 would complete the age of superannuation on December 31, 2010. According to Rule 3.26 (a), the age of retirement is 58 years and he cannot be retained in service thereafter. There is no arbitrariness or violation of Article 14 or 16(1) of the Constitution.