JUDGMENT :

With the consent of the parties, hearing of the matters has been done through video conferencing and there is no complaint whatsoever regarding audio and/or video quality.

2. It has been submitted by Mr. Ajit Kumar, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellants, that in all these appeals similar issues are involved, therefore, all the appeals may be heard together and may be disposed of by common order.

3. The same submission has been made by the learned counsel appearing for the State and the JPSC.

4. In view thereof and considering the fact that the issues involved in the four appeals are similar, all have been heard together and are being disposed of by this common order.

5. These appeals preferred under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent are directed against the order/judgment dated 15.03.2021, 13.04.2021 and 07.04.2021 passed by learned Single Judge of this Court in writ petitions being W.P.(C) No.864 of 2021, W.P.(S) No.1214 of 2021, W.P.(S) No.1186 of 2021 and W.P.(S) No.1055 of 2021 respectively wherein the issue raised pertains to issuance of following directions as per the prayer made in the writ petitions which read as under:-

i. For a declaration that the proviso to rule 4 of the Jharkhand Combined Civil Services Examination Rules, 2021 is contrary to rule 3(IV) of the said Rule, 2021 and behest the parameters necessary to mitigate the age gap of those whose age expired due to non-compliance of Rule 3 of Civil Service Rule, 1951 which is pari-materia of Rule 4 of the New Rule 2021.

ii. For a further declaration that there is an abrupt departure of cut-off date for counting the upper age limit for appearing at the Combined Graduate Level Civil Service Exam for Civil Service under State, by notification dated 05.02.2021 was without any valid reason, and, the apparent objective to mitigate the ouster from zone of consideration in non-holding of the examination due from previously existing continuity was broken without any valid reason thereby 5 years galloping jump has dampened the prospects of all such candidates due to non-compliance of previous Rule 3 (now 3(IV) of 2021).

Learned Single Judge has dismissed the writ petitions declining to issue a writ in the nature of mandamus for relaxation of the upper age limit for participation in the selection process of the 7th Combined Civil Services Competitive Examination to be conducted by Jharkhand Public Service Commission.

6. Brief facts of the case as per the pleadings made in the writ petitions which require to be enumerated herein, read as under :-

It is the case of the writ petitioners that one advertisement being Advertisement No. 01/2020 was published on 26.02.2020 for Combined Civil Service Competitive Examination-2017, 2018 and 2019 in the State of Jharkhand, wherein suitable relaxation was given for computation of upper age limit as on 01.08.2011 for all the clubbed vacancies following the pattern adopted in earlier six consecutive yearly vacancies. However, due to Covid-19 pandemic, the said vacancy could not be finalized and in the meantime, the Jharkhand Combined Civil Services Examination Rules, 2021 was notified in the month of January, 2021 which was to be effective prospectively. Thereafter, the JPSC advertised Jharkhand Combined Civil Services Competitive Exam, 2021 through JPSC website. As per Clause 4 of the said advertisement, the upper age limit has to be calculated on the basis of the cut-off date as 01.08.2016.

It is the further case of the writ petitioners that it would be evident on examining the earlier rule vis-à-vis the new rule that the provision of clubbing the vacancies for two or more years together which has been made for the first time by reasons of the proviso to Rule 4 of the Rules, 2021 is dehors the rules itself.

It is the further case of the writ petitioners that if any vacancy arises in a particular year but the same could