A duly renewed DESM eligibility certificate must be recognized as valid on the application cut-off date.

The petitioner applied pursuant to Advertisement No. 12 of 2019 for the post of Computer Operator-cum-Programming Assistant Instructor (Theory), Category No. 30.

He claimed reservation under the Dependent of Ex-Servicemen (DESM) General category and uploaded an Eligibility Certificate issued by the Zila Sainik Board, Karnal.

He was issued a roll number in the DESM General category, appeared in the written examination, and secured 56 marks.

In the final result dated 28 September 2022, however, the petitioner was not considered under the DESM category and was instead treated as a General category candidate.

The DESM selection cut-off was 56 marks, while the waiting-list cut-off was 55 marks.

The respondents contended that the Eligibility Certificate had originally been issued on 9 February 2015 and had not been renewed.

The petitioner relied on renewal endorsements appearing on the certificate and on the verification furnished by the Zila Sainik Board.

The Zila Sainik Board subsequently confirmed that the certificate was renewed annually, including on 5 February 2019, and that the certificate was valid on the relevant cut-off date, namely 20 August 2019.

Whether the petitioner possessed a valid DESM Eligibility Certificate on the last date for submission of the online application, i.e., 20 August 2019, so as to claim reservation under the DESM category?

Whether the respondents were justified in treating the petitioner as a General category candidate despite his having claimed and uploaded documents supporting the DESM category?

Whether the petitioner was entitled to reconsideration of his candidature and consequential appointment-related relief on the basis of his marks and category cut-off?

The Court exercised jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India to examine the legality of the final selection result.

The governing rule was contained in Note 15 of Clause 2.4 of Advertisement No. 12 of 2019, which required a DESM candidate to possess a valid Eligibility Certificate on the last date of submission of the online application and to produce it when required.

The Court applied the principle that the validity and effect of an official certificate must be determined from the records and confirmation of the competent issuing authority.

An Eligibility Certificate renewed annually by the Zila Sainik Board remains valid in accordance with those renewals; its original date of issuance cannot be considered in isolation when subsequent renewal endorsements are duly recorded and verified.

The petitioner had consistently claimed the DESM category in his application, roll-number allocation, and online document scrutiny, and had uploaded the relevant Eligibility Certificate.

The certificate itself contained renewal endorsements, and the issuing authority expressly confirmed that it had been renewed on 5 February 2019, before the 20 August 2019 cut-off date.

Therefore, the respondents’ assumption that the certificate became invalid after its original issuance was contrary to the official record.

Since the petitioner secured 56 marks, equal to the DESM selection cut-off, excluding him from the DESM category materially affected his selection prospects.

The Court consequently held that his candidature had to be reconsidered by treating the certificate as valid on the relevant date.

The final result dated 28 September 2022 was set aside to the limited extent that it excluded the petitioner from DESM consideration on the ground of alleged invalidity or non-renewal of his Eligibility Certificate.

The Haryana Staff Selection Commission was directed to reconsider his candidature under the DESM General category, recalculate his position, and issue an appointment order if he fell within the zone of selection and satisfied all other requirements.

If appointed, he would receive admissible consequential or notional benefits, but no actual salary for the period during which he had not rendered service; salary would accrue from the date of actual joining.

The exercise was directed to be completed preferably within eight weeks.