VINOD KUMAR MANTOO Vs. HIGH COURT OF DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is directed against the letter dated 16.11.2009 issued by the High Court whereby the petitioner has been informed that his application to appear in the Delhi Higher Judicial Services Examination, 2009 has been rejected on the ground that he was "overage". The plea of the petitioner is that he is entitled to relaxation of the upper age limit for recruitment under the Residents of Kashmir Division in the State of Jammu and Kashmir (Relaxation of Upper Age Limit for Recruitment to Central Civil Services and Posts) Rules, 1997 (hereinafter referred to as 'the said Rules') as amended up to date, issued under Article 309 and Clause (5) of Article 148 of the Constitution of India by the Department of Personnel and Training by a notification dated 07.12.2007. The learned counsel for the petitioner pointed out that the principal rules were notified on 10.04.1997 vide No. GSR 208 (E) in the Gazette of India. It was subsequently amended as under:- (i) GSR 826 (E) dated the 27th December, 1999 (ii) GSR 919 (E) dated the 22nd December, 2001 (iii) GSR 879 (E) dated the 10th November, 2003 (iv) GSR 707 (E) dated the 6th December, 2005 According to the learned counsel for the petitioner the amendments extended the date appearing in Rule 1(3). The date stipulated in Rule 1(3) of the said Rules was the terminal date upto which the rules were to remain in force. Initially, the said date was 31.10.1999. The same was extended by the subsequent amendments and, ultimately, by the amendment notified on 07.12.2007 whereby the operation of the said rules was extended up to 31.12.2009.

(2.) The case of the. petitioner is that the said rules are applicable and that Rule 6 thereof would come to his aid. Rule 6 of the said Rules reads as under:-

(3.) The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner also referred to the Instructions for the Guidance of Candidates for direct recruitment to the Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service, 2007. He drew our attention to paragraph 4 thereof, which reads as under:-