JUDGMENT :

MANJUSHA DESHPANDE, J.

1. The Petitioner herein is challenging the legality and validity of the impugned judgment and order dated 7 July 2023 passed by the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal, Mumbai (“MAT Mumbai” for short) in Original Application No. 396 of 2023. The Petitioner herein had approached the MAT by filing Original Application No. 396 of 2023, claiming that an advertisement No. 045/2022 dated 11 May 2022 was issued by the Respondent for recruitment of the Gazetted post of Group A and B officers. She had filled in the form for the said examination from General Open Category i.e. “unreserved category.” It is her case that though she desired to apply from the “Open Women Category.” However, she did not apply from the said category considering Clause 5.10 and 5.14 of the said advertisement. It required her to produce recent Non-Creamy Layer Certificate (“NCL Certificate” for short)/Economically Weaker Section (“EWS” for short) Certificate, issued by the competent authority, which was valid on the last date i.e. cut off date of her submission of the Application i.e. 1 June 2022. Similarly, as per Clause 5.14 of the said advertisement required that for claiming any benefit for reservation, it was mandatory to hold a valid certificate before the last date of application. Since she did not possess the NCL Certificate of the financial year before the prescribed cut off date, she did not apply from the said category of Open Women Category. Instead she applied for the category Open General i.e. Unreserved Category.

On the basis of the said application, she appeared for the Preliminary examination and she cleared the same and qualified for the Main examination. Thereafter, she also appeared for the main examination, which was held on 21 January 2023, 22 January 2023 and 23 January 2023. While she was awaiting the results of the said examination, the Department of Other Backward Bahujan Welfare issued a Corrigendum dated 17 February 2023 amending Clause 2 (iii) of the Government Circular dated 25 March 2013. The Clause 2(iii) of the Government Circular dated 25 march 2013, states that the crucial date for consideration of claim for candidate of not belonging to the creamy layer category is valid certificate of NCL on the last date of submitting the application. The amendment enables a person applying from NCL Category to submit a certificate of current financial year. Therefore, considering the said amendment to the Government Resolution, the Petitioner made representation to the Respondent-Commission to consider her claim from “Open Women” Category on the basis of the said corrigendum. When the same was not considered, she had filed the Original Application (“O.A” for short) before the MAT, Mumbai.

2. The said O.A. was opposed by filing a reply by the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (“Commission” for short), wherein it was their categorical stand that while filling up her application form, the Applicant has mentioned her category to be unreserved and she does not belong to the NCL. The reliance was placed by the Commission in its affidavit on general instructions to the candidates published in Commission’s Website, more particularly, instruction No. 1.2.5.6 and 1.2.5.7 which provided that:

3. The said instructions prohibits an Applicant from making any changes in the application once the form is filled in. Similarly, reliance is also placed on paragraph 5.5 of the advertisement of the State Services Preliminary Examination 2022, wherein there was a clause that, while claiming reservation for women category, it was mandatory to mention about the candidate belongs to NCL category. Therefore, the said corrigendum of 17 February 2023, which merely changes the cut of date of the NCL can not be made applicable to the Applicant as she did not fill in the form from NCL category.

4. After considering the submission from either side, the MAT, Mumbai, vide its judgment dated 7 July 2023 has been pleased to dismiss the O.A. Th