Point of Law : Postal authority cannot be treated as an agent of the Commission so as to treat the dispatch of the application before the last date by post, as having been submitted before the last date. This apart, it was clearly provided in the advertisement that the print out of the online application with the other relevant documents could also be submitted personally which facility could have been availed of by the petitioner but admittedly was not availed of.

JUDGMENT :

Saurabh Lavania, J.

1. Heard Sri Zubair Hasan, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri H.P. Srivastava, learned Additional C.S.C. appearing on behalf of opposite party Nos. 2 and 4.

2. This writ petition has been filed praying inter alia the following main relief:-

“(i) Issue a writ, direction or order in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondents to issue a call letter and permit her to appear in the interview which is going for selection of post of Woman Member of District Consumer Commission, Hardoi.”

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner, based upon the pleadings and documents on record, submitted that State Government for making appointment on the post(s) of President(s) and Member(s) of District Consumer Commission established in different districts of State of U.P. published a notification/ advertisement dated 27.10.2020 and the last date, as mentioned therein, for submission of application form, was 30.11.2020. Vide application dated 25.11.2020 (annexed as Annexure No. 2 to the petition), petitioner being eligible applied for the post of Women Member of District Consumer Commission, Hardoi. This application was sent through registered post on 27.11.2020. Thereafter, another notification/ advertisement dated 12.05.2021 was issued by the State Government by which last date for submission of application form was extended from 30.11.2020 to 11.06.2021, which was further extended to 25.06.2021 by a notification/ advertisement dated 10.06.2021.

4. He further submitted that when call letters were issued to all the candidates except the petitioner then she represented her cause and in turn, her request for permitting her to appear in the interview was not acceded, despite the fact that the Demand Draft of Rs. 1000/-was encashed, on the ground that the application form of the petitioner was received in the concerned Office on 01.12.2020 i.e. after the last date of submission of application form, which, as per notification/advertisement dated 27.10.2020 was 30.11.2020, though, the same was extended till 25.06.2021 and being so the application form of the petitioner was valid and she should have been called for facing interview. He also stated that the petitioner was not informed about this aspect of the case else she would have resubmitted her application form in pursuance to the notification/advertisement dated 12.05.2021. Now for the post(s) in issue, interview is going on and would be completed very soon and if the petitioner is not permitted to appear in the interview process she would suffer irreparable loss and injury for no fault. In fact opposite parties are at fault as they have not informed the petitioner about the delay in submission of application form and in this way, the petitioner has to made suffer for the fault of opposite parties.

5. Learned Additional C.S.C., on the basis of instructions, submitted that in the notification/advertisement dated 27.10.2020 issued by the State Government, last date of submission of application form was 30.11.2020. This last date, in fact, was not extended vide notification/advertisement dated 12.05.2021. The notification/advertisement dated 12.05.2021 is fresh notification inviting the applications for the post(s) mentioned therein i.e. President(s) and Member(s) of District Consumer Commission. As per this notification, last date of submission of application(s) was 11.06.2021, which was extended to 25.06.2021 vide notification/advertisement dated 10.06.2021. The notification/ advertisement dated 12.05.2021 only saves the candidature of those applicants who had submitted proper applications within time. Meaning thereby, a candidate whose application form, pursuant to the notification/ advertisement dated 12.05.2021 was valid, was not required to apply afresh pursuant to the notification/advertisement dated 12.05.2021 and his/her candidature would be considered otherwise not. In this case, application form of the petitioner was not valid as the same was received in th