Overview
- Justice Jai Kumar Pillai held that Aadhaar and voter ID cards are not determinative proof of date of birth in service matters.
- The bench quashed September 2020 appellate orders that had reinstated the retired worker and removed the incumbent from the lone sanctioned post.
- Pramila, appointed in June 2018 after a regular selection, was directed to be reinstated with continuity of service, notional seniority and monetary benefits.
- The court applied the doctrine of delay and laches, noting the retired employee challenged her service-record birthdate nearly two years after superannuation in March 2017.
- Finding a breach of natural justice, the court noted the petitioner was terminated without a hearing and reiterated that service records carry a presumption of correctness requiring prompt, impeachable evidence to rebut.