Gujarat High Court
Union Of India vs Rajnish Kumar S/O Udayshankar Bhadani on 5 August, 2025
Author: A.S. Supehia
Bench: A.S. Supehia
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/6804/2025 ORDER DATED: 05/08/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 6804 of 2025
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UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
Versus
RAJNISH KUMAR S/O UDAYSHANKAR BHADANI & ORS.
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Appearance:
MR HARSHEEL D SHUKLA(6158) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1,2,3,4
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.S. SUPEHIA
and
HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE R. T. VACHHANI
Date : 05/08/2025
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.S. SUPEHIA)
1. The present writ petition is filed with the following prayers:
"(A) Your Lordships be pleased to admit and allow this petition. (B) Your Lordships may be pleased to issue a writ of Certiorari and/or any other appropriate writ, order or direction in the nature of Certiorari, quashing and setting aside the order dated 28.11.2024 passed in Original Application No. 413 of 2020, by the learned Central Administrative Tribunal, Ahmedabad.
(C) Pending admission, final hearing and disposal of the present petition, Your Lordships may be pleased to stay the execution, implementation and operation of order dated 28.11.2024 passed in Original Application NO. 413 of 2020 by the learned Tribunal, Ahmedabad."
2. RULE. By way of the present writ petition, the petitioners have assailed the judgment and order dated 28.11.2024, passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as 'the Tribunal'), whereby Original Application No.413 of 2020 preferred by the respondent no.1 herein- Rajnish Kumar came to be allowed. While allowing the Original Application, the Tribunal directed the present petitioner-authorities to declare the respondent no.1 as a successful candidate of the recruitment process undertaken in the year 2018.
3. Learned advocate Mr. Harsheel D Shukla for the petitioner- Department has submitted that, the Tribunal has erred in issuing such directions, inasmuch as the respondent no.1, who appeared in the recruitment process initiated vide advertisement No. DAVP Page 1 of 5 Uploaded by Radhika Srinivasan(HCD0042) on Thu Aug 07 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Aug 07 21:45:43 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/6804/2025 ORDER DATED: 05/08/2025 undefined 10801/11/00/63/1718 during the period between 16.12.2017 to 22.12.2017, for direct recruitment test for Clerk Hindi Typist-2018 did not produce his original OBC Caste Certificate of the year 2015, but produced a photocopy thereof. It is submitted that, the requirement of the advertisement as per the communication dated 27.06.2018 is that, a candidate, who belongs to the reserved category, has to produce the original OBC Caste Certificate on the date of Hindi Typing Test. Learned advocate Mr.Shukla has submitted that, on 27.06.2018, the petitioners conveyed to the respondent no.1 to produce the original certificates certifying his caste as an OBC. However, on 02.06.2018 the respondent no.1 had only produced the photocopy of the certificate and thereafter he sent the same by registered post AD to one Mr.Vijay Pratap Yadav, which in fact upon verification, was found that the department had never received the same.
4. Learned advocate Mr. Shukla further submitted that in fact the petitioners were unable to find the aforesaid mail article, which was sent by the respondent no.1 to the Air Force Station, Bhuj. Hence, the OBC certificate dated 31.03.2015 issued to the respondent no.1 was not considered and his candidature was cancelled. Learned advocate Mr. Shukla has submitted that the Tribunal fell in error in issuing the directions to the petitioners to consider the respondent no.1 as a successful candidate.
5. We have heard learned advocate Mr. Shukla as well as perused the order passed by the Tribunal.
5.1 The petitioners published an advertisement on 16.12.2017 in the Employment Newspaper for the direct recruitment to the post of Group 'C' in Indian Air Force at HQ South Western Air Command Page 2 of 5 Uploaded by Radhika Srinivasan(HCD0042) on Thu Aug 07 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Aug 07 21:45:43 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/6804/2025 ORDER DATED: 05/08/2025 undefined Units, which indicate one post of Hindi Typist in the OBC category to be filled in. Accordingly, the applicant-respondent no.1 applied for the requisite post, enclosing his OBC Certificate dated 31.05.2015 issued by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Jahanabad, Bihar.
5.2. The Department issued a letter dated 01.05.2017, directing respondent no.1 to appear for the written examination, which was scheduled to be held on 02.06.2018. Accordingly, the respondent no.1 appeared in the written examination. Thereafter, based on his performance, the respondent no.1 was shortlisted for the skill test and was informed vide letter dated 27.06.2018 to appear in the skill test to be conducted on 04.08.2018.
5.3. By the said communication dated 27.06.2018, the respondent no.1 was informed to bring the original certificates. The respondent no.1 appeared in the skill test on 04.08.2018 and had produced the original documents including the original Caste Certificate dated 28.11.2017 and a photocopy of the Caste Certificate dated 31.05.2015.
5.4 At this stage it would be relevant to incorporate the recitals of the communication dated 27.06.2018:
"4. You are required to bring the Written Test Call Letter (conducted on 02 nd June,2018) Original Certificates as per Hindi Typist advertised vide DAVP 10801/11/00/63/1718 dated 16 Dec 2017 and one original Government Photo Identity document for verification (Aadhar Card/ Driving License/ Voter ID Card etc). If at any time, you are found to be using any unfair means and trying to influence the official of this Station, your candidature will be cancelled.
5.This Intimation Letter duly signed by the Controlling Officer and the Acknowledgment Card furnished for the written Screening Test is to be brought along by the candidates which will be verified by the Station Security/ Examination Staff at the time of entry to the AF Station Bhuj Campus/ Examination Centre and in absence of the same the candidates would not be permitted for the Hindi Typing Test. "
5.5 Thus, it is the case of the petitioners that since respondent no.1 produced the OBC Certificate dated 28.11.2017, and a Page 3 of 5 Uploaded by Radhika Srinivasan(HCD0042) on Thu Aug 07 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Aug 07 21:45:43 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/6804/2025 ORDER DATED: 05/08/2025 undefined photocopy of the OBC Certificate dated 31.05.2015, which is subsequently sent by the registered post with due acknowledgment, is required to be ignored, hence his candidature was cancelled.
6. We find that the Advertisement No.DAVP 10801/11/00/63/1718, does not stipulate any clause incorporated mandating the candidates to produce their certificates before a particular date or along with the initial applications filed by the candidates. For the first time on 27.06.2018, the petitioners informed the respondent no.1 to bring his certificates. From the recitals of paragraph no.5 of the communication dated 27.06.2018 mentioned hereinabove, it appears that upon verification of the Station Security, the respondent no.1 was permitted to enter to the Air Force Station, Bhuj Campus and were permitted for Hindi Typing Test. Thus, the petitioners had an opportunity to prevent the respondent no.1 from appearing in the Hindi Typing Test on the ground of submitting a photocopy of the OBC Caste Certificate dated 31.05.2015. Despite noticing this, the petitioners permitted the respondent no.1 to appear in the Hindi Typing Test, which he subsequently cleared and was declared as more meritorious than the other private respondents.
6.1 Thus two facts are noticed by us:
(I) that the respondent no.1 had produced the original OBC Caste Certificate dated 28.11.2017 and a photocopy of the Caste Certificate dated 31.03.2015, when he appeared in skill test on 04.08.2018;
(II) The petitioners did not object to the certificates and had allowed him to appear in the Hindi Typing Test. Subsequently, the respondent no.1 had also sent his OBC Caste Certificate dated 31.03.2015 through registered post AD, which the petitioners have Page 4 of 5 Uploaded by Radhika Srinivasan(HCD0042) on Thu Aug 07 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Aug 07 21:45:43 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/6804/2025 ORDER DATED: 05/08/2025 undefined denied of having being received. Under the Right to Information Act, 2005 the respondent no.1 was informed that mail article, through which, he had sent the OBC Caste Certificate was received by the Air Force Station, Bhuj on 13.08.2018 and was delivered to one Shri Vijay Pratap Yadav. However, it is the case of the petitioners that they did not find such mail article.
7. Thus, in wake of the aforesaid facts, since the respondent no.1 had already produced the caste certificates, one original dated 28.11.2017, and the another of the year 2015 which was a photocopy and was allowed to appear in the skill test on 04.08.2018, hence, the respondent no.1 cannot be subsequently denied the appointment or his candidature cannot be cancelled. The OBC certificate dated 31.03.2015, which was produced by him was a photocopy, however, it is pertinent to note that the petitioners did not questioned his OBC certificate dated 28.11.2017, the certificate which was produced in original and hence, we find the action of petitioners as arbitrary and illegal in cancelling his candidature for appointment to the post of Hindi Typist (OBC). The Tribunal, after consideration of the facts and the legal precedents, has precisely held the action of the petitioners as illegal and arbitrary in violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India.
8. The present writ petition fails and accordingly the same stands rejected.
(A. S. SUPEHIA, J) (R. T. VACHHANI, J) Radhika/42 Page 5 of 5 Uploaded by Radhika Srinivasan(HCD0042) on Thu Aug 07 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Aug 07 21:45:43 IST 2025