IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.15325 of 2007 GYAN CHANDRA VISHWAKARMA, S/O LATE SURAJ MISTRI, R/O MOHALLA BELWARGANJ, BHARATPURA KOTHI, P.S. ALAMGANJ, DISTRICT-PATNA. ……………………………PETITIONER. Versus 1.THE PATNA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, PATNA CITY CIRCLE THORUGH ITS MUNICIPAL COMMISSIONER. 2.THE DEPUTY MUNICIPAL COMMISSIONER, PATNA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, PATNA. 3.THE DEPUTY CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PATNA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, PATNA. 4.THE EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PATNA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, PATNA CITY CIRCLE. ……………………………RESPONDENTS. ----------- 02/ 11.04.2011 Heard counsel for the petitioner and counsel for the Patna Municipal Corporation. The petitioner’s grievance in this writ application is confined to consideration of his case for appointment on compassionate ground. Mr. Naresh Kumar Malhotra, learned counsel for the petitioner referring to the letter of Executive Officer, Patna City Circle of the Patna Municipal Corporation dated 07.05.2007, would submit that the case of petitioner for appointment on compassionate ground is still under consideration before the Municipal Commissioner / Additional Municipal 2 Commissioner of the Patna Municipal Corporation and therefore, this Court should direct the respondents to take appropriate expeditious steps and pass a final order on the same. Mr. Vinay Kirti Singh, learned counsel for Patna Municipal Corporation on the other hand would submit that from perusal of Annexure-5, the letter of Executive Officer dated 07.05.2007, it is clear that there was no application of the petitioner in the date of 28.12.2003, and the first application of the petitioner traceable was of the date of 14.08.2004, which would make the claim of the petitioner time barred as it was filed after period of five years from the date of death of his father i.e. 24.05.1999. In the considered opinion of this court the crucial question which has to be decided by the authority in this case is as to whether the petitioner had filed application on 28.12.2003 as contained in Annexure-1. If the said application has been filed by the petitioner, there would be no difficulty of holding that the petitioner 3 had filed the application within the prescribed period of limitation but if the said application cannot be traced from the official records, the application of the petitioner dated 14.08.2004 or 16.09.2006 contained in Annexure-2 and Annexure-3 respectively, will not be of any benefit to the petitioner as they are time barred. The Executive Officer, has gone through the records and has found that no such application was filed by the petitioner dated 29.12.2003 as it was not found from the entries made in receipt and dispatch register. Thus it is also of a matter of serious concern and the authorities will have to look into all other official records to find out the genuineness of the claim of the petitioner to have filed the application dated 29.12.2003. As this matter has remained pending only for this purpose, this Court would expect from the Municipal Commissioner of the Patna Municipal Corporation to himself address to this question and take his final decision in the light of the materials available on record within a period of three 4 months from the date of receipt/production of a copy of this order. If it is found that the application of the petitioner was filed on 29.12.2003, the Municipal Commissioner will be under an obligation to also take his final decision for appointment of the petitioner on compassionate ground. On the other hand if it is found by him that there was no such application dated 29.12.2003 filed in the Office of the Patna Municipal Corporation by the petitioner, he will record the reasons for the same and reject the claim of the petitioner for his appointment on compassionate ground. In course of holding the inquiry as with regard to the receipt of the alleged application dated 29.12.2003, the petitioner if he so desires, would be given an opportunity of leading evidence to the effect that he had filed such application on 29.12.2003. with the aforementioned observations and directions, this application is disposed of. Ranjan (Mihir Kumar Jha,J)