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Judgment
Hon’ble Dr. Anand S Khati, Member (AA):-
M.A. No.5169/2026
The present M.A. is filed seeking permission of joining together in a single application.
For the reasons stated therein, the M.A. No.5169/2026 is allowed.
O.A. No. 4007/2026
In the present Original Application, filed under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, the applicants hahave prayed for the following relief(s):
“8.1Declare and/or read down Clause 5 of Recruitment Notification No. 01/2025 dated 13.11.2025 and NOTE-III to Proforma-I, insofar as they are construed and applied to mandate automatic rejection of an OBC-NCL candidature solely because the prescribed-format certificate bears an issue date outside 01.01.2025 to 04.12.2025, without permitting verification of whether the candidate belonged to the Central List of OBCs and satisfied the Non-Creamy Layer requirement on the relevant reckoning date, as arbitrary and violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India;
8.2Quash and set aside the Respondents' interview/document-verification instruction, including instruction/banner prescribing 'VALIDITY OF OBC/NCL CERTIFICATE 01/01/2025 ΤΟ 04/12/2025', to the extent it operates as an absolute bar to the Applicants' participation without substantive verification;
8.3In the alternative and without prejudice, declare that the expression 'Last Date of Application' in Clause 5, after issuance of Public Notice dated 04.12.2025, means 11.12.2025 and that the Respondents cannot continue to treat 04.12.2025 as the terminal certificate date for candidates governed by the extended application period;
8.4Direct the Respondents to examine and verify the substantive Central OBC-NCL status of each Applicant on the relevant reckoning date on the basis of the prescribed-format certificate, earlier/subsequent OBC-NCL certificates, contemporaneous State NCL and financial/status material, Proforma-IA declaration and direct verification from the competent issuing authority, and not to reject candidature merely on account of the formal issue date of the later prescribed certificate;
8.5Direct the Respondents to treat a certificate issued by a competent State/UT authority in the prescribed Government of India format, certifying a community included in the Central List and the candidate's Non-Creamy Layer status, in accordance with the Notification and not to reject it merely because the issuing office is a State/UT authority;
8.6Direct the Respondents to permit the Applicants, if otherwise eligible and shortlisted on merit, to participate in their respective interviews/document verification and all consequential stages of Recruitment Notification No. 01/2025 under the OBC-NCL category, subject to final verification of substantive eligibility;
8.7In case the scheduled interview date of any Applicant passes before effective protection is granted, direct the Respondents to provide such Applicant a special/provisional interview at the earliest available opportunity, provided that the Applicant was otherwise shortlisted and was prevented from participating solely on the impugned OBC-NCL certificate-date ground;
8.8Direct that the Applicants' candidature/results be kept alive and processed subject to the final outcome of the present OA, without creation of any equity and without prejudice to the Respondents' right to verify all eligibility conditions;
8.9Quash any consequential rejection/communication passed against any Applicant during pendency of the present OA solely on the impugned certificate-date ground;
8.10Award costs of the present proceedings in favour of the Applicants;
and8.11 Pass such other or further order(s) as this Hon'ble Tribunal may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case”
Learned counsel for the Applicants submits that the Applicants seek permission to participate provisionally in the interview/document verification for Physical Education posts under KVS/NVS Recruitment Notification No. 01/2025, notwithstanding the date of issuance of their OBC-NCL certificates, subject to verification of their substantive OBC-NCL status and the final outcome of the present O.A. It is further submitted that Applicant No. 4 submitted a representation dated 17.09.2026, which remains undecided. Learned counsel seeks liberty for the Applicants to submit comprehensive representations to the competent authority, if not already submitted, and a direction to the Respondents to consider and dispose of the same by passing a reasoned and speaking order within a stipulated timeframe.
Issue notice. Mr. S. Rajappa, Mr. U. N. Singh, Mr. Dilbag Singh and Mr. Sanjay Khanna, learned counsel, accept notice on behalf of the Respondents. Learned counsel for the Respondents seek time to obtain appropriate instructions.
In view of the limited prayer made by learned counsel for the Applicants, and without entering into the merits of the case, the present O.A. is disposed of with a direction to the Applicants to submit a comprehensive representation to the competent authority amongst the Respondents within one week from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. Upon receipt thereof, the Respondents shall consider and decide the said representations, along with the representation dated 17.09.2026 already submitted by Applicant No. 4, by passing a reasoned and speaking order, strictly in accordance with law, within three weeks from the date of receipt of the representations.
The O.A. stands disposed of in the aforesaid terms, without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, at the admission stage itself. Pending M.As., if any, shall also stand disposed of. No order as to costs.