Dr. Krishna Gopal Roy v. The State of West Bengal & Ors.

The result, therefore, could not be challenged by the petitioner who was not a candidate and when he had not put to question, the terms and conditions in the advertisement regarding maximum age criteria neither prior to filing of the present application, nor in the present application.

We have considered the rival submissions. We have gone through the records. Even if we were of the view that having regard to the orders passed by the Apex Court, in 4 view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the petitioner be given an opportunity to argue the matter afresh before the Tribunal, the same would be an exercise in futility. It is the specific averment of the writ petitioner in his application that he had crossed the upper age criteria specified in the advertisement for the recruitment in question. It is not his case that he ever sought any relaxation or that he challenged the terms and conditions of the advertisement including the upper age criteria.

In the circumstances a challenge to the result without assailing such conditions in the advertisement and when the petitioner was not even eligible for the post certainly is not to avail any individual relief for himself. Even if this Court were to remand the matter to the Tribunal allowing the petitioner to argue his matter afresh, the substance of the relief claimed in the application was only quashing of the result on account of certain illegalities or irregularities. The law is by now well settled that a Public Interest Litigation does not lie in respect of a service matter. In this connection we refer to decision of the Apex Court in the case of Ayaaubkhan Noorkhan Pathan –Vs.- State of Maharashtra reported in (2013) 4 SCC 465. Quashing of the result would not entitle the petitioner to any individual relief whatsoever. Such relief has been claimed in the application knowing well that the recruitment process is over and appointments have been made. 5

We, therefore, find no reason to interfere with the order dated 10.03.2021 passed by the Tribunal in O.A. No. 415 of 2020.

Urgent Photostat Certified copy of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties upon compliance with all necessary formalities. (Madhuresh Prasad, J.) (Prasenjit Biswas, J.)