2011 PLC 176 (PLP)

BASHIR AHMED MEMON (MEMBER).

The petitioner has brought this petition under section 22-A(8)(g) of Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1969 claiming that he is workman under the provisions of Labour Laws working with respondent management since 1979 having his record very neat and clean regarding his duties. The petitioner is member of KPT Labour Union and is performing effective and constructive role in healthy and lawful activities in support of KPT Labour Union. It is alleged by the petitioner that due to his affiliation with the trade union the management is against him and is trying to pressurize and victimize him due to his trade union activities on one or the other pretext so much so the management has served the petitioner with notice of retirement dated 13-1-2009 that he shall be retired from service on 8-7-2010 on attaining the age of superannuation. The petitioner has asserted that this notice has been served upon him for retiring him on wrongly recorded date of birth because he has not acted upon the wishes and will of the management which is act of unfair labour practice hence this petition has been filed, with prayer to declare the acts of the respondent management as acts of unfair labour practice and the direction may be issued to the respondent management to correct the date of birth of the petitioner.

2. The respondents were served and they have filed their legal objection regarding maintainability of the petition and have denied the allegations levelled against them by the petitioner. The respondent management has asserted that at the time of joining the service the birth date of the petitioner was recorded as 8-7-1950 and he was certified to be retired on 8-7-2010 on attaining the age of superannuation. The petitioner had not submitted any document describing his age as 13-8-1957 as claimed by him. He even after achieving academic qualification has never provided any document to this effect during his entire period of service and it was only after service of retirement notice dated 13-1-2009 that the petitioner woke up from a deep slumber and claimed that his date of birth is 13-8-1957 on the basis of so called school leaving certificate etc. The respondents have prayed for dismissal of the petition being not maintainable.

3. I have heard the arguments of both the learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the material placed on record.

4. At the time of joining of service admittedly the date of birth of the petitioner was recorded as 8-7-1950 and the petitioner all along for last 30 years remained silent and he woke up from sweet sleep when he was served with notice of retirement and thereafter he approached the respondent management for correction of his birth date but the management has refused to make correction of his birth date on the ground that whatever the date was recorded at the time of joining of service is final in view of the policy of the department.

5. I have considered the matriculation certificate produced by the petitioner which bears the birth date of the petitioner and in order to verify the fact I had sent for-verification report from Headmaster Government Boys Secondary School, Keamari and I had also called the Headmaster in person who has produced the original General Register maintained by School authorities wherein the birth date of petitioner was recorded as 13-8-1957.

6. No doubt on merits the petitioner's case requires consideration but since it has been observed by honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan in case reported in 2007 SCMR 66 that the date of birth once recorded at the time of joining of service of Government servant was to remain final and thereafter no change in date of birth was permitted and this decision of the honourable Supreme Court tightens my hands in giving relief to the petitioner as I cannot by-pass the orders/decisions of the honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan.

7. In his petition the petitioner took plea that since he was an active member of trade union and his trade union activities were not liked by the respondent management, actually the management has recorded the birth date of petitioner in their record when the petitioner joined the service and at that time he was not member of any trade union, therefore the plea taken by the petitioner could not be considered at this stage.

8. In view of above facts and circumstances I am of the considered opinion that the petition merits no consideration and the same stands dismissed. However the petitioner is at liberty to approach proper forum regarding change of his birth date, if he is so advised. H.B.T./3/NIRC. Petition dismissed.