The principle of relating back to the original offer letter and the need for expeditious steps in medical examinations were central to the judgment.

( 1 )

( 2 ) WITH consent of learned counsel for the parties, the petition is taken up for final disposal.

( 3 ) IN the month of May 1999 respondents published an advertisementiinviting applications from unmarried male Indian citizens for selection as Airmen in the Non technical Trades (Group Y ).

( 4 ) THE eligibility condition for the candidate in pursuance to the advertisement were as under :

" a) The candidate should have passed Matriculation Equivalent examination with a minimum of 45% marks in aggregate ; b) The candidate should have been born between 1. 11. 1980 and 1. 11. 1983. "

( 5 ) THE petitioner applied in pursuance to the advertisement on 17. 11. 1999. He was declared successful in the written examination. The petitioner thereafter appeared in the medical test and he was declared medically fit and was short listed. The petitioner was issued a call letter dated 20. 6. 2000 stating that the petitioner had been provisionally selected and asking the petitioner to report along with call letter on 1. 8. 2000. However, on 17. 7. 2000 the petitioner was issued a letter to the effect that due to administrative and other reasons the intake for which the petitioner was called for enrolment stood cancelled. It was also stated in the said letter that the next tentative schedule of intake was during December 20/01/2001 and that the petitioner may be called for the said enrolment OB again. This was subject to vacancy at that stage and medical fitness of the petitioner.

( 6 ) THE petitioner was once again issued a call letter on 13. 11. 2000 as a medical due candidate in view of the fact that he qualified earlier. The said letter require"the petitioner to undergo re-medical examination due to the fact that more than six months had lapsed since his last medical examination in which he was declared medically fit. A medical examination was once again held on 11. 12. 2000 but the petitioner was not found fit on account of obesity. The petitioner preferred an appeal against the said decision and the ease of the petitioner was referred! to the appeal Medical Board vide letter dated 30. 1. 2001. It was further stated in the said letter that the petitioner was getting over age on 16/06/2001 since requirement is that a candidate should be under 20 years of age and the petitioner was born on 16. 6. 1981. It was thus stated that the appearance before the Medical Board may not serve any useful purpose. The relevant paragraphs of the said letter is as under :

"2. As you are getting over age on 16/06/2001 before the next enrolment you cannot be enrolled even if you are declared Fit during the Appeal Medical board. 3. However, you have the option to undergo Appeal Medical Examination if you so desire, but this will not serve any useful purpose towards your enrolment,"the petitioner appeared before the medical Board on 30/04/2001 and was declared medically fit. The petitioner was however not appointed.

( 7 ) THE petitioner sent a legal notice dated 13. 5. 2001 to which no response was received and the present petition was filed on 28. 5. 2001.

( 7 ) MR. R. K. Saini, learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the next intake of Airmen took place on 20/06/2001 and by that criteria the petitioner would be four days over age. It is thus contended that it was a fit case for relaxation specially in view of the fact that relaxation have been given to other Airmen and the same has been admitted in para 11 of the counter affidavit to the following effect :

" It is intimated that over-age sanction was obtained as a one time measure for those candidates only who become over-age as on december 2000 due to change of enrolment schedule from August 2000 to December, 2000 due to administrative reasons. "

( 8 ) MR. Saini further contended that in view of the decision in the appeal by the Medical Board on 30th April, 2001 the relevant date in case of the petitioner would relate back to the original date when the petitioner was declared medicall