SARAT KUMAR PARIDA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner assails the judgment dated 22.5.2008 passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Cuttack Bench, Cuttack, in O.A. No. 608 of 2004 wherein the prayer of the Petitioner to further relax the age for two years in pursuant to Rule 3 of the Central Civil Services and Civil Posts (Upper Age Limit for Direct Recruitment) Rules, 1998 (hereinafter referred to as the "relevant rules" for brevity) was denied.

(2.) The undisputed facts in this case are that pursuant to the Notification dated 10th March, 2004 while working as Technical Officer in the Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, the Petitioner applied through proper channel to the post of Senior Research Officer (Entomology). However, he did not get any call letter while others were called to face the test. He made various representations, but without any result. It is the further case of the Petitioner that he came to know his candidature has been rejected due to his over age without giving age relaxation as provided under Rule 3 of the relevant rules. According to the Petitioner without considering his candidature in proper perspective by giving age relaxation applicable to Government employees, opposite party No. 2 has conducted the selection for the post of Senior Research Officer (Entomology) on 27.8.2004. It is further pleaded by the Petitioner that the candidature of opposite party No. 4 (Dr. R.K. Hazra) was taken into consideration in relaxation of his age and he was selected and has joined in the post of Senior Research Officer (Entomology) on 03.10.2004. Therefore, he approached the learned Tribunal for a direction to extend age relaxation for two years by resorting to Rule 3.

(3.) The opposite parties have filed counter affidavit before the learned Tribunal, inter alia, pleading that the application of the Petitioner cannot be entertained as the Petitioner was over age on the cut off date stipulated in the advertisement. Further, the Petitioner being a departmental candidate, is entitled for relaxation of up to five years, in other words, if the Petitioner is within the age of 50(45+5), the candidature of the Petitioner ought to have been considered, but as the date of birth of the Petitioner is 08.1.1953, the Petitioner was over aged on the cut off date. They further pleaded that Dr. R.K. Hazra has not been given any differential treatment and therefore prayed to dismiss the writ petition.