RAJNEESH KUMAR JAIN Vs. STATE OF M. P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A common order is being passed in this petition and connected petitions i.e. W.P. No. 5770/98 (Abdul Jabbar Khan vs. State of M.P. and others) and W.P. No. 356/99 (Prakash Chandra Gupta vs. State of M.P. and others). W.P. No. 5824/98 (Smt. Kusum Saxena vs. State of M.P. and others was allowed by the Court to be withdrawn by order dated 27 -1 -1999 with liberty to the petitioner of that case to urge all grounds on her behalf in this petition.

(2.) ALL the petitioners in this batch of petitions are practising Advocates and have applied, pursuant to the advertisement issued by the Public Service Commission, for recruitment through Written test and interview for the post of Civil Judges in the subordinate judiciary of the State of M.P. Admittedly, all the petitioners have crossed the minimum prescribed age limit of 35 years and are prima facie ineligible to apply for the post under the terms of the advertisement. By these petitions, they have challenged the validity of the conditions in the advertisement prescribing essential qualifications and the bar of age.

(3.) THE relevant conditions contained in the advertisement issued by the P.S.C. on 3 -12 -1998 inviting applications for the post of Civil Judge reads (rendered into English) as under: - -