Civil court jurisdiction upheld for date-of-birth correction in service records despite Industrial Disputes Act objection.

A suit for correction of date of birth in service records is a civil suit falling within Section 9 CPC unless jurisdiction is expressly or impliedly barred, and it remains maintainable in Civil Court. The Industrial Disputes Act did not bar the suit because, when it was filed, the contingencies for invoking Section 2-A had not yet arisen, so the plaintiff could not then seek relief under that Act. Where the principal relief is maintainable in the chosen forum, the suit cannot be rejected in toto merely because consequential reliefs may be available elsewhere. The Civil Court therefore had jurisdiction to entertain the suit, and the contrary view was wrong.

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Issues: Whether a civil suit for correction of the date of birth in service records and consequential reliefs was maintainable in the Civil Court, and whether the Industrial Disputes Act barred such jurisdiction.

Analysis: A suit of a civil nature falls within Section 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 unless its cognizance is expressly or impliedly barred. A suit seeking correction of the service record relating to date of birth is maintainable in Civil Court. The bar was not attracted by Section 2-A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 because, on the date the suit was instituted, the contingencies contemplated by that provision had not arisen and the appellant could not yet have sought relief under that Act. Where the principal relief is maintainable in the forum chosen, the court cannot reject the suit as a whole merely because consequential reliefs may lie elsewhere.

Conclusion: The Civil Court had jurisdiction to entertain the suit for correction of the date of birth, and the High Court was wrong in holding it wholly not maintainable.

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