EWS reservation eligibility is determined strictly by possession of a valid certificate on or before the prescribed cut-off date.

The applicant, Majeet, applied for the post of Constable (Executive) Male in the Delhi Police under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category

He approached the Tribunal seeking a direction to the respondents to declare his result under the EWS category and include his name in the final result dated 24.01.2024

The respondents contended that the applicant failed to provide a valid EWS certificate as per the recruitment notice, which stipulated that the certificate must be issued on or before the "crucial date" (30.09.2023)

The matter was heard alongside the precedent set in Jatin Kumar v. Staff Selection Commission Ors. (O.A. No. 525/2024), where candidates produced certificates issued after the closing date or for the incorrect financial year

1. Whether the terms of the recruitment advertisement were ambiguous regarding the financial year and the validity of the EWS certificate

2. Whether an EWS certificate obtained after the "crucial date" (closing date of application) but before the Physical Endurance and Measurement Test (PE) could be considered valid for appointment

The court primarily applied Clause 6.4 of the recruitment advertisement, which mandated that EWS certificates must be issued on or before the crucial date, explicitly stating that certificates issued after the closing date would not be acceptable even if valid for the financial year

The Tribunal relied on the Supreme Court’s decision in Divya v. Union of India and Ors. (2023), which established that eligibility must be determined with reference to a sacrosanct cut-off date and that candidates must be in possession of the requisite certificates by the closing date of applications

The Tribunal noted that the present case was squarely covered by its earlier decision in Jatin Kumar (O.A. No. 525/2024)

The applicant argued that there was an ambiguity between Clause 6.4 (setting the cut-off date) and Clause 4 of Column 21 (requiring possession of certificates during PE) of the advertisement

However, the Tribunal rejected this, holding that the cut-off date for eligibility (30.09.2023) is sacrosanct and cannot be diluted

The Tribunal observed that even if the EWS category is a result of beneficial legislation, the specific terms and conditions of the recruitment process must be strictly followed

Following the ratio in Divya (supra), the Tribunal concluded that since the applicant’s certificate was obtained after the closing date, it could not be considered, regardless of whether it was obtained prior to the PE

The court held that the applicant was not entitled to the EWS category benefits as he was not in possession of a valid certificate by the crucial date of 30.09.2023

Consequently, the prayer for inclusion in the final result and appointment was rejected

No costs were awarded