Case Note & Summary
The case pertains to the selection and appointment of Junior Engineers (Elect) Grade II in the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The Services Selection Board issued an advertisement on 01.07.1997 with a cut-off date of 31.07.1997 for eligibility. The appellants, Rakesh Bakshi and another, had completed their diploma course in 1996 but their results were declared on 12.10.1997, after the cut-off date. Despite this, they were selected and appointed. A writ petition was filed by Harvinder Singh challenging their appointment. The Single Judge dismissed the petition, but the Division Bench allowed it, setting aside the selection and appointment on the ground that the appellants did not possess the requisite qualification as on the cut-off date. The appellants appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court noted that the appellants had been working for nearly 18 years and that subsequent selections were held in 2004, 2007, and 2009, but the appellants did not apply as they were already employed and had become age-barred. The court also noted that the writ petitioner had low marks and would not benefit even if the appellants' appointments were set aside. The court held that while the Division Bench was correct in law that eligibility must be determined as on the cut-off date, considering the equities, the long service of the appellants, and the earlier litigation, it would not be appropriate to oust them. The court granted relief to the appellants, allowing them to retain their positions.
Headnote
A) Service Law - Eligibility - Cut-off Date - Qualification acquired after cut-off date cannot make candidate eligible - The court reiterated that a person who clears the prescribed qualification after the cut-off date cannot be considered qualified and their applications ought to have been rejected (Para 11). B) Service Law - Equitable Relief - Long Service - Court may grant relief against ouster after long service - Despite holding that the appellants were not eligible on the cut-off date, the court granted relief to the appellants against being ousted after serving for nearly two decades, considering the efflux of time, earlier litigation, and the fact that the writ petitioner had low marks (Paras 10, 13).
Issue of Consideration
Whether the selection and appointment of candidates who did not possess the requisite qualification as on the cut-off date can be set aside, and whether relief can be granted on equitable grounds given long service
Final Decision
The Supreme Court granted relief to the appellants against their ouster, allowing them to retain their positions despite not possessing the requisite qualification on the cut-off date, considering the equities and long service.
Law Points
- Eligibility must be determined as on cut-off date
- qualification acquired later cannot make candidate eligible
- Court may grant relief based on equities and long service
