The main legal point established in the judgment is the interpretation of eligibility conditions for the post of Ayurved Medical Officer, specifically regarding the date of examination, registration with the Ayurved Council, and the consideration of candidates who qualified the examination before the advertisement but obtained registration after the last date of submission of the application.

HEMANT GUPTA, CJ.

Challenge in the present appeal is to an order passed by the learned Single Bench on 19-6-2017 in W.P. No. 21828/2015, Hirendra Kumar Sahu v. State of M.P. whereby the select list for appointment to the post of Ayurved Medical Officer was set aside for the reason that the eligibility conditions in the advertisement have subsequently been changed, therefore, the select list prepared on the basis of changed criteria cannot be sustained as the rules of game cannot be changed after game has begun.

2. The brief facts leading to the present appeal are that an advertisement (Annexure P-2) was published by M.P. Public Service Commission (for short “the Commission”) for filling up of 722 posts of Ayurved Medical Officer. Last date for submission of on-line application forms was 26-10-2013 whereas the date of written examination was notified as 16-3-2014. The relevant conditions of the advertisement, when translated in English, read as under:

“(E) Duties : Treatment, health care and other assigned duties,

Name of the Post: Ayurved Medical Officer

Eligibility : Essential Educational:

Qualification

(a) xxxxxx

(b) xxxxxx

(c) The applicant, who entered in the last year examination, can also apply but he should submit the minimum qualification certificate including the internship certificate at the time of interview.

Note:

(1) A candidate has to produce, before appearing in the interview, attestation form, other essential documents along with the documents in support of essential educational degree/qualification (including internship certificate) and proof of registration with the Ayurved/Unani Council established by law. In absence of such documents, the candidate will not be called for the interview.

(2) It is clarified in relation to Clause (C) above that only those candidates will be considered to be eligible, who have submitted on-line application before the last date and have appeared in the last examination before the said date.

(I) The applicant must possess the aforesaid qualification till the last date for submitting online application. After the last date of submission of the online application, the candidates acquiring the aforesaid qualification shall not be eligible to be considered for the advertised posts.”

3. The learned Single Bench held that the candidates, who have qualified the final examination before the advertisement, are not eligible to be called for interview, as such was not the condition in the advertisement. Therefore, select list prepared by treating such candidates as eligible for appointment, was set aside. The relevant findings of the learned Single Bench reads as under:—

“Thus, it is trite law that the rules of a game cannot be changed after it has begun. In the considered opinion of this Court, by introducing a new date for filing the documents, the respondent No. 2 has certainly extended the scope of advertisement which has resulted in injustice to many prospective candidates. It is rather perplexing to note as to why the cut-off date has been changed from 26-10-2013 to 29-6-2015 because once if it was already advertised that the applications with all the documents and details shall be accepted till 26-10-2013 only, then why any person who is not eligible shall even apply for the same. The action of the respondent No. 2 in extending the date of submitting the documents will surely allow those persons to be appointed who were not even eligible as on 26-10-2013 for the appointment on the said post. This arbitrary change of date has deprived many prospective candidates from applying for the said post in the year 2013 itself and cannot be allowed to sustain. It is beyond comprehension as to why a person who is otherwise ineligible on the date of initial advertisement shall submit his form for the post. It is pertinent to mention here that this Court on 19-2-2016 had observed that any appointme