IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE K.BALAKRISHNAN NAIR & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE K.T.SANKARAN TUESDAY, THE 15TH JANUARY 2008 / 25TH POUSHA 1929 WA.No. 108 of 2008 -------------------- ( AGAINST THE JUDGEMENT IN WPC.14876/2006 DATED 08.10.2007) APPELLANT/PETITIONER ------------------------------------- DR.C.A.MARY, CHERIAMPURATHU HOUSE, KALANGALI P.O., KOORACHUNDU, KOZHIKODE DISTRICT, NOW WORKING AS ASSOCIATED PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF PLANT PATHOLOGY, COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE, VELLAYINI, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. BY ADV. SRI.K.R.B.KAIMAL (SR.) ADV. SRI.C.P.PEETHAMBARAN ADV. SRI.B.UNNIKRISHNA KAIMAL RESPONDENTS/RESPONDENTS ----------------------------------------------- 1. STATE OF KERALA, REPRESENTED BY SECRETARY, GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. 2. THE COMMISSIONER OF GOVERNMENT EXAMINATIONS, POOJAPURA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. BY GOVERNMENT PLEADER SHRI K. SANDESH RAJA. THIS WRIT APPEAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 15/01/2008, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: K. BALAKRISHNAN NAIR & K.T. SANKARAN, JJ. ................................................................................... W.A. No. 108 OF 2008 ................................................................................... Dated this the 15th January, 2008 J U D G M E N T Balakrishnan Nair, J: The writ petitioner is the appellant. The Writ Petition was filed challenging Ext.P5 order of the Joint Commissioner for Government Examinations dated 22.12.2005 rejecting her application for correction of her date of birth in the school records and also the order of the Government dated 20.04.2006 affirming the same . 2. The brief facts of the case are the following: As per the school records, the petitioner's date of birth is 15.12.1954. Her name was not registered with the local Grama Panchayath. But in the Baptism Register of St. Thomas Church, Koorachundu, her date of birth was recorded as 23.12.1955. On realising the mistake in 1990, the petitioner immediately moved the Government for condoning the delay in applying for alteration of date of birth in her school records. The Government allowed the application and condoned the delay. Thereafter, she submitted the application dated 21.07.2004 before the Commissioner for Government Examinations to correct her date of birth in the S.S.L.C. book. The said officer physically verified W.A. No. 108 OF 2008 2 the Baptism Register of the aforementioned church and found that the entries therein are not reliable and rejected her application for correction of her date of birth in her service book by Ext. P5 order dated 22.12.2005. It was noticed in the said order that there is one younger brother for the appellant, viz., Augusthy and that though his name is not seen registered in the Baptism Register of St. Thomas Church, Koorachundu, the Vicar of the church has issued a Baptism Certificate to Augusthy. The Joint Commissioner for Government Examinations also noticed that the dates of birth of Smt. Rosa, the appellant's elder sister and Shri Joseph, appellant's elder brother, as per the affidavit of the petitioner/appellant, are 12.01.1951 and 18.01.1954 respectively. As per the birth register maintained by the Grama Panchayat, the dates of birth of them are 12.01.1951 and 12.02.1954 respectively, whereas as per the Baptism Register, the dates of birth of them are 22.12.1950 and 18.01.1954 respectively. But as per the school records, the dates of birth of the appellant's elder sister and elder brother are 15.05.1949 and 05.05.1953 respectively. It was also noticed that in the case of another younger sister, viz. Eali, the date of birth shown in the Panchayat Register is 02.09.1958. But in the Baptism Register, it is shown as 10.08.1958 and in the school records as 10.08.1958. So the dates of birth given in the Panchayat Register, as regards the aforementioned three persons, do not tally with the dates of birth entered in the Baptism Register in respect of them. The competent authority, on physical W.A. No. 108 OF 2008 3 verification, found that the entries in the Baptism Register were not being made in the chronological order. The date of birth of the petitioner is entered in a different page and it is not recorded where it should have been entered. So the competent officer suspected manipulation of the entries in the Baptism Register. 3. In view of the above facts, the claim of the petitioner/appellant was rejected by the Joint Commissioner for Government Examinations by Ext. P5 order dated 22.12.2005. She appealed. The appeal was dismissed by the Government by Ext. P6 order dated 20.04.2006 affirming the findings of the Joint Commissioner for Government Examinations. The Government also observed that in view of the Government Order, G.O.(P) 45/91/P&ARD dated 30.12.1991, even if there is correction in her S.S.L.C. book, she cannot get her date of birth corrected in her service book. 4. The Writ Petition challenging the Government Order dated 20.04.2006 was dismissed by the impugned judgment. The learned single Judge observed that there is no reason to interfere with Ext.P5 order since it has been passed by the competent officer giving cogent reasons. Therefore, this Writ Appeal is filed challenging the judgment of the learned single Judge. 5. We notice that the discrepancies in the Baptism Register were found by the second respondent after physical verification of the same. The findings of the competent officer are findings of fact and they can in no way be described as perverse. Certainly a plausible view on the facts has been taken by the said W.A. No. 108 OF 2008 4 officer and the same has been rightly affirmed by the Government also. No ground has been made out warranting interference with the same under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. So the learned single Judge has rightly dismissed the Writ Petition. We agree with the reasoning and the conclusion arrived at by the learned single Judge. In the result, the Writ Appeal fails and it is dismissed. K. BALAKRISHNAN NAIR, JUDGE. K.T. SANKARAN, JUDGE. lk