Substantive eligibility prevails over rigid technical cut-off dates during pandemic-related academic disruptions.

The applicants, serving as Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS) and Wireman in the CPWD and Rashtrapati Bhawan with "excellent" performance records

applied for the post of Junior Engineer (Electrical/Civil) through the Limited Departmental Competitive Examination (LDCE)-2022

The recruitment notification dated 08.06.2022 established 30.06.2022 as the cut-off date for acquiring the minimum educational qualification and 30.08.2022 as the deadline to produce original certificates

Applicant No. 3 possessed a diploma since 2018, but Applicants No. 1 and 2 had their final results declared on 08.07.2022 and received their diplomas on 25.08.2022

The respondents rejected their candidatures on the ground that they failed to obtain the requisite qualification by the 30.06.2022 cut-off

The applicants contended that the delay in result declaration was due to the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond their control

1. Whether the rejection of the applicants' candidature for failing to meet the qualification cut-off date was sustainable when the delay was caused by COVID-19 pandemic disruptions

2. Whether substantive merit and the fulfillment of eligibility before the certificate submission deadline should prevail over a rigid technical cut-off date

The Tribunal primarily applied the principles of substantive justice over procedural technicalities.

It relied on the precedent of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Deepak Yadav vs. Union of India & Ors. (Writ Petition Civil No. 408/2021), which held that merit and substantive qualification must prevail over rigid technical cut-off dates to prevent injustice

the Tribunal considered the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines and academic relaxations issued to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on examination schedules

The Tribunal found that the delay in declaring the results for Applicants No. 1 and 2—occurring only eight days after the cut-off—was directly attributable to pandemic-related disruptions rather than any fault of the applicants

Although the respondents argued that the 30.06.2022 cut-off was sacrosanct to maintain uniformity, the Tribunal noted that the notification allowed for the production of certificates until 30.08.2022, which the applicants satisfied

Applying the ratio in Deepak Yadav (supra), the Tribunal reasoned that since the applicants fulfilled the substantive eligibility criteria shortly after the cut-off and well before the final documentation deadline, denying them the opportunity to compete based on a "mere technicality" would result in a miscarriage of justice

the Tribunal determined that the unique circumstances of the pandemic necessitated treating this as a "special case"

It held that the applicants must be treated as eligible for the LDCE-2022 for the post of Junior Engineer (Electrical/Civil)

The respondents were directed to consider the applicants for appointment or promotion on merits, in accordance with the law, within eight weeks from the date of receipt of the order

No order was made as to costs