S.P.BHARUCHA, J. - (1.)THE appeal aforementioned impugns the order of summary dismissal of a writ petition filed by the appellant in the High Court of Punjab and Haryana. Though the order only says "dismissed" it was clearly passed by reason by the judgment of this Court in Dhan Singh v. State of Haryana, 1991(1) S.C.T. 137 : 1991 Supp (2) SCC 190 . The writ petition arises upon facts similar to those in the appeal and it seeks reconsideration of the aforementioned judgment.
(2.)THE facts that we state are of the appeal. The appellant was enrolled as a Sepoy in the Army on 30th January 1959. He served in the Army until some date in the year 1976, by which time he had been promoted to the post of Hawaldar. In 1978 the appellant joined the service of the State of Haryana (the first respondent) as a clerk.
(3.)THE Government of Punjab had framed the Punjab National Emergency (Concession) Rules, 1965, and they were adopted by the state of Haryana when it was formed. These Rules gave benefits to persons who had been in military service before joining Government service, "Military service" was defined in Rule 2 thus : "For the purposes of these Rules the expression Military Service means enrolled or Commissioned service in any of the three Wings of the Indian Armed Forces (including service as a Warrant Officer) rendered by a person during the period of operation of the proclamation of Emergency made by the President under Article 352 of the Constitution of India on October 26, 1962 or such other service as may hereafter be declared as Military Service for the purposes of these Rules. Any period of Military Training followed by Military Service shall also be reckoned as Military Service." On 4th August, 1976, the aforesaid definition was amended by the State of Haryana so that it read thus : "For the purposes of these rules the expression 'Military Service' means the service rendered by a person who had been enrolled or commissioned during the period of operation of the proclamation of Emergency made by the President under Article 352 of the Constitution of India on October 26, 1962 in any of the 2 Wings of the Indian Armed Forces (including the service as a Warrant Officer) during the period of the said emergency or such other service as may hereafter be declared as Military service for the purpose of these Rules. Any period of Military Training followed by Military service shall also be reckoned as Military service."
It will be seen that military service as originally defined meant service, enrolled or commissioned, in the armed forces rendered during the period of operation of the Emergency. (The Emergency was that proclaimed in 1962). By the amended provision military service meant only the service that was rendered by a person who was enrolled or commissioned in the armed forces during the period the Emergency remained in force. The amendment, therefore, curtailed the definition of military service and excluded therefrom those who had been enrolled or commissioned before the proclamation of the emergency and had served during its operation.