MANJU BALA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The question for consideration before the Full Bench is: What should be the cut off date for purposes of acquiring qualifications for eligibility for purposes of employment to a particular post? As a corollary another question which arises for consideration is as to whether the Court should go into the question of reasonableness or appropriateness of a particular cut off date fixed by the authorities conducting recruitment to the service.

(2.) Briefly the facts are that the petitioners were seeking employment to the post of Assistant Teachers and Nursery Teachers in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. The Staff Selection Commission (for short SSC) was entrusted with the task of making the recruitment. Accordingly an advertisement was issued by the SSC in September 1992. The last date for receipt of application forms from candidates was 12th October 1992. The written examination was to be held on 7th February 1993. The advertisement prescribed the age limit as 18-30 years as on 1st January 1993 which was relaxable in case of certain categories. So far as educational qualifications is concerned, the advertisement provided that the candidates who had yet to appear at the academic/certificate examination or whose result had been withheld or not declared on or before 1st January 1993, were not eligible. The petitioners had appeared for their B.Ed. examination conducted by Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak in May 1992. Their results were declared on 15th January 1993. Therefore, as per the advertisement the petitioners were not eligible for the posts. The petitioners have challenged the fixation of 1st January 1993 as the cut off date for the purpose of acquiring academic qualifications as arbitrary. It is submitted that fixation of 1st January 1993 as the cut off date has not nexus with the object sought to be achieved in fixing such a date and thus it is wholly arbitrary.

(3.) The petitioners have relied on a Division Bench judgment of this Court in Kanta Rani & vs. Staff Selection Commission & Ors., 39 (1989) DLT 330. When this matter came up for consideration before another Division Bench of this Court, the Bench felt that the judgment in Kanta Rani's case required to be reconsidered and, therefore, this reference was made to the Full Bench.