JUDGMENT :

Rajiv Shakdher, J.

The petitioner is aggrieved by the fact that she was denied a seat by the respondent i.e. All India Institute of Medical Science (hereafter referred to as 'AIIMS') even though she was eligible for being considered for allotment of a seat in the MBBS Program in the OBC (non-creamy layer) category (hereafter referred to as 'OBC category').

2. The respondent i.e. All India Institute of Medical Sciences (hereafter referred to as 'AIIMS') has defended its action by taking recourse to the fact that the certificate evidencing that the petitioner fell in the OBC category, which is dated 19.08.2019, falls outside the timeframe that is stipulated in Prospectus for MBBS Admission 2019 (hereafter referred to as 'Prospectus'). More specifically, AIIMS relies upon Clause 4.1 of the Prospectus. For the sake of convenience, Clause 4.1 of the Prospectus is extracted hereafter: -

"4.1 CRITERIA FOR OTHER BACKWARD CLASSES (NONCREAMY LAYER) [OBC]

(Common to AIIMS, New Delhi & Fourteen Other AIIMS):

Reservation for OBC (Non-Creamy Layer) shall be according to the rules of the Government of India. Applicants are required to ensure that he/she does not belong to the persons/sections (Creamy Layer) mentioned in Column 3 of the Schedule to the Government of India, Department of Personnel &Training O.M. No. 36012/22/93-Estt. (SCT) dated 08/09/93 which is modified vide OM No. 36033/3/2004 Estt. (Res.) dated 09/03/2004 or the latest notification of the Government of India (i.e. Central list). A format is provided at the end of the Prospectus. Certificate to be produced during counseling should NOT be older than ONE Year on date of First Counseling."

2.1 It is, thus, the contention of AIIMS that the certificate issued to the petitioner, which is dated 19.08.2019 and evidences the fact that she belongs to the OBC category could not have been accepted as it did not fall within the period stipulated in Clause 4.1 of the Prospectus. In this behalf, AIIMS relies upon, in particular, the following portion of Clause 4.1:

"A format is provided at the end of the Prospectus. Certificate to be produced during counseling should NOT be older than ONE Year on date of First Counseling."

2.2 It is the say of AIIMS that, therefore, the certificate produced by a candidate to claim the benefit of the fact that he/she belongs to the OBC category can only arise if it is issued within a period of one year preceding the date of first counseling. To buttress its stand, AIIMS has relied upon the judgment of the Division Bench of this Court dated 31.07.2019, passed in L.P.A. No. 488/2019, titled Mohit Sharma vs. All India Institute of Medical Sciences & Ors.

3. Therefore, the issue which arises for adjudication is: what is that period which is contemplated in Clause 4.1 of the Prospectus? To delve into the issue, it would be necessary to note the following facts in the background of which this petition has been preferred.

3.1 In and about February 2019, AIIMS issued a Prospectus inviting applicants to appear in the MBBS Examination, 2019. On 25.02.2019, the petitioner uploaded her application on the web-portal provided for this purpose. Consequent thereto, on 15.05.2019, the petitioner was issued an admit card.

3.2 The petitioner sat for the exam on 25.05.2019. The result of the exam was declared on 12.06.2019. The petitioner obtained 98.8965173 as an overall percentile. Her overall rank was 3813 while her rank in the OBC category was 1058. The petitioner failed to secure a seat for herself in the first, second and third rounds of counseling.

3.3 Pertinently, the first round of counseling was held on 26.06.2019 while the second and third round of counseling was held on 15.07.2019 and 05.08.2019 respectively.

3.4 Concededly, AIIMS issued a notification dated 06.08.2019 initiating another round of counseling to fill up those seats which were either left vacant or became available on account of candidates having surrendered their seats or tendered resignations qua t