The court affirmed that eligibility criteria for academic appointments must be strictly adhered to, and disjunctive terms can be interpreted conjunctively for clarity in qualifications.

JUDGMENT

Ajit Kumar, J.

Heard Sri. R.K. Ojha, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri. Nityodit Tripathi, learned counsel for the petitioner, Sri. Manoj Kumar Singh, learned Advocate appearing for the UP Higher Education Service Commission, Sri. Prabhakar Awasthi, learned counsel appearing for 5th respondent and learned Standing Counsel for the State-respondents.

2. By means of this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, petitioner has prayed for quashing of order by which his candidature came to be cancelled holding him not eligible for appointment as Assistant Professor in a postgraduate college for he having not secured Second Division marks in the relevant subject in which he has an undergraduate degree.

3. Basic argument advanced by learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner is that earlier qualification was degree in the relevant subject with 50% marks which subsequently came to be amended as degree in the relevant subject or degree in Second Division.

4. Two fold arguments have been advanced: firstly, the word 'or' being disjunctive, it means there should be undergraduate degree in the relevant subject or degree with second division marks as per the earlier rule and, therefore, it could either be a case of having a degree of relevant subject or having a degree with second division marks; and secondly, the Second Division marks which is required now to be obtained by a candidate which would be considered as per the marks that are generally to be assigned to form a Second Division degree upon a general standard scale which is 45.5% by some universities.

5. Sri. Ojha, however, admits that as far as Rajasthan University is concerned, it does not provide a Second Division below to 48% marks and on that count, the petitioner would not be having Second Division degree as he has degree from that university.

6. Per contra, it is argued by learned counsel for respondent- UP Higher Education Service Commission as well as learned Standing Counsel that even by amendment, the Rules stand on the same footing with an adjustment on the second division which would have lower side marks than fifty percent (50%), but a candidate is to have necessarily a Second Division degree and that too in the relevant subject.

7. In support of the above argument, it is submitted that the word 'or' is to be read as 'and' in conjunction to two preceding and succeeding words as it will give an effective meaning to what the rule making authority had intended and, therefore, applying the rule of interpretation, it is argued that if the word 'or' is read as 'and' then the candidate should have a degree in the relevant subject with second division marks.

8. It is further argued on behalf of Commission as also the State respondents that a candidate is required to produce a Second Division degree in the relevant subject and, therefore, it hardly matters whether there is 50% or 48% marks and if the University does not confer upon a candidate with a second division degree, such a candidate would definitely not be eligible for appointment as Assistant Professor as he was not possessing the requisite qualification.

9. Having heard learned counsel for the respective parties and having perused the records, I find that advertisement issued by the UP Higher Education Service Commission very categorically prescribed the essential qualification for a candidate to have Second Division degree in the relevant subject. The relevant clause of advertisement 6.1.4 is reproduced hereunder:

10. The word and expression '' means that a candidate of course should be graduate in the relevant subject in which the post is required to be filled and then he should be having a Second Division degree. Petitioner though of-course has secured 45% marks, but the Rajasthan University from where he has obtained degree does not provide Second Division at that percentage of marks. Merely because some other universities prescribe for 45.5% or above as Second Division, in my considered v