WAPDA through its Chairman and anothers vs MUHAMMAD NAWAZ KHAN
This matter arises from a petition for leave to appeal filed by WAPDA against the judgment of the Federal Service Tribunal dated 14-12-1994, which accepted the respondent employee's appeal and directed the correction of his date of birth in his service record based on a civil court decree. The core legal question is whether a civil servant is entitled to seek a change in his date of birth near the end of his service based on a civil court decree obtained without the employer being a party, and whether unexplained delay and silence throughout most of his service disentitle him to such relief. The Supreme Court granted leave to appeal, holding that the contention regarding the employee's long silence over thirty years and the binding nature of a decree to which the department was not a party requires detailed consideration, especially in light of established precedent holding that delayed claims for correction of date of birth do not merit a favourable decision.
- Is an employer department bound by a civil court decree declaring an employee's date of birth when the department was not a party to the suit?
- Does a civil servant's silence and failure to object to his recorded date of birth for the major portion of his service disentitle him to seek its correction near retirement?
- Whether the Federal Service Tribunal can validly order the correction of a civil servant's date of birth on the basis of a belated declaratory decree?
' ZIA MAHMOOD MIRZA, J.---Respondent Muhammad Nawaz Khan, a Superintending Engineer in WAPDA obtained a decree from Civil Court declaring that the correct date of his birth was 16-1-1938 and not 20-3-1935 as was recorded in his Matriculation Certificate. On the basis of this decree, Controller of Examination, University of Peshawar, respondent No,2, issued a duplicate Matriculation Certificate in which the date of birth of Muhammad Nawaz Khan was recorded as 16-1-1938.
Respondent, thereafter, requested the petitioner department for change of date of birth in his service record. His request was turned down. He then filed an appeal before the Federal Service Tribunal which has been accepted vide judgment dated 14-12-1994 directing the petitioners "to correct the appellant's date of birth as 16-1-1938". Petitioners seek leave to appeal against the judgment of the Service Tribunal.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioners submit that the respondent joined WAPDA as Junior Engineer on 8-9-1962 and his date of birth mentioned in his Matriculation Certificate was entered in his service record. During the last 30 years or so, the respondent never raised any objection to his date of birth as entered in the service record and now that he is retiring on 20-3-1995, he has come up with a decree from the Civil Court with a view to gain some more years in service. In the submission of the learned counsel, petitioner department is not bound by the Court's decree as it was not a party thereto. Learned counsel points out that in somewhat similar circumstances, this Court has held in the case of M.R. Khalid v. Chief Secretary Punjab (1994 SCM R 1633) that silence of a civil servant over the major portion of his service was such that he did not merit a favourable decision from the Government in the matter of correction of his date of birth. Contention raised needs consideration. Leave is, therefore, granted with the direction that the appeal shall be made ready and fixed for hearing before the long summer vacations of this year.
Cited by 1 case
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