1977 PLP 362 (PLC)

Petition No. 7/51/Poll. 1(2) of 1975, decided on 31st May, 1975. ‑‑ Retirement‑Employer retiring worker on attaining age of 55 years according to existing rules and practice‑Age of 55 years calculated on basis of "Engagement Form" filled according to information supplied by worker and signed by him‑Medical certificate showing his age as 48 years produced by worker after order of retirement‑Held, cannot be relied upon‑Action of employer, bona fide and reasonable Worker, however, decided to be examined by a competent Doctor and to be re‑instated if found less than 55 years of age. This is an application under section 6 of the Pakistan Essential Services (Maintenance) Act, 1952 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") by one Sher Muhammad, an ex‑employee of the Attock Oil Company Limited tithe respon dent) which has been declared under section 3 of the Act to be an employment to which the Act applies. The admitted facts are that the petitioner was the respondent's employee. His services were terminated on 31st December, 1973 on the ground that he had attained the age of fifty‑five years which has been fixed by the respondent as the age for the retirement of employees. The petitioner has contended that he was less than fifty‑five years of age as he was born in the year 1925 and was only forty‑eight years of age at the time of termination of his services by the respondent. On 18th April, 1974, the petitioner made a written representation to the respondent for correction in his date of birth but with out any result. Earlier, on 2nd April, 1974, the petitioner had obtained a declaration from the District Magistrate, Campbellpur (Annexure 'B') in sup port of his date of birth ordering fresh entry in the Birth Register of Village Sukhwal in that connection. On the basis of the said entry the District Health Officer, Campbellpur, has issued a certificate (Annexure ('C')) showing the petitioner's year of birth as 1925. The contention of the petitioner there fore is that the action taken by the respondent in respect of him is highly unreasonable as he was only forty‑eight years of age at that time. According to the respondent the petitioner was retired from service as he had reached the age of fifty‑five years. This conclusion was drawn on the basis of Engagement Form (Annexure 'A') and a Questionnaire (Annexure `B') which were filed on the basis of the information supplied by the petitioner himself and showing his year of birth as 1918. The questionnaire (Annexure 'B') also bears the signature of the petitioner. The contention of the respon dent is that as the petitioner had never requested the respondent to make correction in his date of birth till Ws services were terminated by the respon dent, the representation made by the petitioner in that respect thereafter was an afterthought. There is no doubt that the petitioner had signed the Questionnaire (Annex ure 'B') which shows his year of birth as 1918 yet the birth certificate issued by the District Health Officer, Campbellpur, creates a doubt regarding his actual date of birth. The petitioner might have signed the Questionnaire (Annexure 'B') in good faint without realising its consequences therefore it will certainly be unfair to make him suffer therefor. The certificate issued by the District Health Officer, Campbellpur, cannot be relied upon as a conclusive proof in respect of the petitioner's age as the entries in that regard were made much later after obtaining a declaration from the District Magistrate in that respect.

5. Under the circumstances I direct that the petitioner be medically exa mined by a competent Doctor and in case he is found less than fifty‑five years of age, he should be treated to be still in the service of the respondent till he attains that age. As the certificate from the District Health Officer, Camp bellpur, was produced before the respondent after his retirement from service, the action taken by the respondent was bona fide and reasonable under the circumstances of the case. The petitioner therefore will not be entitled to any pay or other benefits, during the intervening period in case he is re‑instated in service.