EWS certificate validity determined by crucial date, not subsequent issuance for financial year.

The applicant, Jatin Kumar, applied for the post of Constable (Exe.) – Male.

The closing date for online applications, which served as the crucial date for eligibility conditions, was September 30, 2023.

The applicant possessed two EWS certificates: one issued on November 29, 2022, valid for the financial year 2022-23, and another issued on January 11, 2024, valid for the financial year 2023-24.

Clause 6.4 of the advertisement notice stipulated that an EWS certificate issued after the crucial date but valid for the financial year would not be acceptable, and such candidates would be considered under the UR category.

The applicant's EWS certificates were rejected by the respondents as the first was for the previous year (2022-23) and the second was issued after the crucial date (September 30, 2023).

Consequently, his candidature was considered under the Unreserved (UR) category instead of EWS.

The PE&MT was conducted on January 14, 2024.

1. Whether the terms and conditions stipulated in the advertisement regarding the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) certificate are ambiguous concerning the relevant financial year.

2. Whether the applicant's EWS certificates should be accepted, entitling him to benefits under the EWS category, despite being issued either for a previous financial year or after the crucial date for application submission.

The court primarily applied the principle that eligibility criteria and crucial dates stipulated in an advertisement are sacrosanct for recruitment processes.

It relied on the precedent set by the Supreme Court in Divya v. Union of India and Ors. (decided on October 09, 2023), which established that a candidate must be in possession of the requisite certificate for the specified financial year before the closing date of application and that eligibility is determined with reference to the cut-off date.

The judgment also implicitly referred to clause 6.4 of the advertisement notification, which states that EWS certificates issued after the crucial date but valid for the financial year will not be acceptable.

The court found no ambiguity in the advertisement's terms regarding the EWS certificate and its crucial date.

It explicitly noted that the closing date for applications (September 30, 2023) is a sacrosanct cut-off date.

Although the applicant possessed an EWS certificate dated November 29, 2022, valid for the financial year 2022-23, this was for the financial year immediately preceding the crucial date, not the one relevant for the application period.

The certificate dated January 11, 2024, though valid for 2023-24, was obtained after the crucial date of September 30, 2023.

The court emphasized that the financial year immediately preceding the closing date of examination has to be considered crucially.

It applied the ratio from Divya (supra), confirming that eligibility must be determined with reference to the cut-off date.

The argument that EWS is beneficial legislation did not override the clear stipulations of the advertisement.

Therefore, neither of the applicant's certificates fulfilled the conditions, leading to the rejection of his EWS claim.

It concluded that the terms and conditions of the advertisement were not ambiguous, and the crucial date for submitting the EWS certificate was sacrosanct.

The applicant's EWS certificates were deemed invalid as one was for a previous financial year (2022-23) and the other was obtained after the crucial closing date (January 11, 2024, vs. September 30, 2023).

The court rejected the applicant's contention to consider the certificate obtained prior to the PE&MT test, aligning with the precedent set in Divya (supra).