No relief for appointment can be granted after the recruitment process concludes and the select list expires.

In response to an employment notification dated 31.07.2012, the applicant applied for the post of Helper-II

She successfully cleared the written and physical efficiency tests and was called for document verification in May 2014

During verification, the respondents noted a discrepancy in her date of birth (DOB) between her School Leaving Certificate and the Board of Secondary Education certificate (issued in 1997)

On 03.11.2016, the Civil Judge (Senior Division), Bhubaneswar, declared her correct DOB as 25.09.1980

the respondents issued a speaking order on 24.09.2018 rejecting her candidature, citing the conclusion of the recruitment process and the submission of a "tampered" certificate

1. Whether the applicant is entitled to recruitment/absorption after the conclusion of the selection process and the expiry of the select list

2. Whether the respondents were justified in rejecting the applicant’s candidature due to a DOB discrepancy that the applicant failed to correct for seventeen years

a select list does not constitute a "reservoir" for future appointments, as established in State of Orissa Anr. v. Raj Kishore Nanda Ors. (2010) 6 SCC 777

once a recruitment panel is exhausted or the process is completed, the court cannot grant relief at a belated stage

The Tribunal observed that the DOB discrepancy was within the applicant's knowledge since 1997, yet she took no steps to correct it until 2014

Applying the Raj Kishore Nanda precedent, the Tribunal reasoned that since the 2012 recruitment process was finalized—with 2,069 candidates appointed and subsequent recruitment cycles in 2013 and 2015 also closed—no relief could be granted

The court noted that the select list had expired, and the judiciary should not extend the life of such panels or direct appointments once the notified vacancies are filled

The Tribunal found that the applicant’s failure to maintain accurate personal records was her own responsibility and could not be attributed to the authorities

It held that no illegality existed in the respondents' actions as the recruitment process was long over and the applicant approached the court at an impermissibly late stage

The prayer for absorption against vacancies identified via RTI was rejected as it violated settled legal principles regarding the finality of recruitment processes