1. The petitioner had applied to the State Bank of India for Customer Relationship Executive (P.B.), a post to be held on contractual basis. The total number of post in all India is 1200 with various reservations included therein. The petitioner holds a graduate degree in Computer Application (BCA) and then Post Graduate Degree in Management (MBA). There is no dispute that they are degrees, as envisaged under the University Grants Commission Act, they are not diplomas or certificate course. The petitioner having applied for the said course qualified in the written test and was called for interview. At the stage of interview, on scrutiny of his credentials, his candidature was rejected. He was verbally told that he lacked the educational qualification for eligibility, even though he was a graduate and holding Post Graduate Degree in Management. He filed this writ petition asserting that he had been verbally told that BCA, Bachelor Degree in Computer Application does not meet the basic requirement for the job in question.

2. A counter-affidavit has been filed by the State Bank of India in which it is not denied that the only ground on which his candidature has been rejected as non-eligible is that BCA does not qualify as the minimum educational requirement for the post concerned. The simple question is, whether the stand of the State Bank of India (hereinafter referred to as S.B.I.) is correct or not?

3. With consent of parties, the writ petition is being disposed of at this stage Itself.

4. In order to appreciate the contentions it is necessary to quote the educational qualifications required as per the advertisement, which is contained in Annexure-3 to the writ petition and is quoted hereunder:

Essential:

(i) Graduation in Arts/Science/Commerce with 50% marks.

(ii) Knowledge in Computers (MS-Office i.e. MS-Word, MS-Excel, ppt, use of Internet Surfing etc.) is essential.

Preferred: (1) Any Additional Degree or 2 years Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management with Marketing/Financial Management subject from recognized university.

Certified Financial Analyst/Chartered Accountant/Certified Financial Planner from recognized bodies.

(i) Diploma in Management with Marketing/Financial Management subject.

(ii) Candidates who possess AMFI and IRDA certificates, otherwise conditions laid down in para 2 of General Information (GI) Will be applicable.

5. A reference to the aforesaid educational qualification would show that a person has to be a graduate in Arts/Science/Commerce with 50% marks. It does not say that the candidate must have educational qualification such as B.A./B.Sc. or B.Com, later of which is the stand of the bank. We then have knowledge of computer as an essential qualification but here again in what manner the knowledge has to be established is left to anybodys guess. Then, again the third preferential requirement was degree or two years Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management, which admittedly the petitioner has as he has the degree of Master in Business Administration.

6. The stand of the bank is that only B.Sc. degree holders would be considered as eligible apart from B.A. or B.Com. To the question whether B.Sc. Computer, B.Sc. Agriculture, MBBS, B.Sc. Engineering, B.Sc. Information Technology would fall within B.Sc, as contemplated by the bank, the stand is totally non-committal leaving it to anybodys guess to be decided as and when occasion arises. Thus, the question is whether a person having the degree of Bachelor in Computer Application could be said to be a graduate in Science. In my view, the advertisement nowhere mentions B.Sc. It mentions graduate in Science. Bank is now trying to read B.Sc. to justify exclusion of the petitioner who has BCA.

7. In my view, a graduate in Computer Application is as much a graduate in Science as a graduate in pure sciences or graduate in Agriculture (B.Sc. Agriculture) or other such graduation degrees. My reasons are two fold. Firstly, if we see the qualificat