JUDGEMENT

Date: 20.07.2024 The present writ petition has been filed for quashing of the important notice dated 13.03.2024, issued by the Examination Controller, Bihar Public Service Commission (hereinafter referred to as the “respondent-Commission”) in connection with the Drug Inspector Competition Examination (Advertisement No.09 of 2022), whereby and whereunder the petitioner has been declared ineligible for the post of Drug Inspector on the ground of not holding qualification as per the advertisement and has been directed to submit his objection on the issue of ineligibility. The petitioner has also prayed for declaring that the requisite qualification for being appointed as Drug Inspector, in terms of clause 5(1) of the Bihar Drugs Controller Cadre Regulation, 2014 (hereinafter referred to as “the Cadre Regulation, 2014”) is the same as provided for in Rule 49 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 (hereinafter referred to as “the Rules, 1945”), which provides that a person who is appointed as an Inspector under the Act shall be a person, who has a degree in Pharmacy or Pharmaceutical Sciences or Medicine with specialization in Clinical Pharmacology or Microbiology from a University established in India by law as also that the respondent authorities are bound to consider the eligibility of the petitioner in terms of the Gazette Notification dated 16.07.2019, issued by the Government of India, which prescribes that a person holding Pharm D qualification shall automatically become eligible for appointment to various posts where a person holding qualification of Diploma in Pharmacy or Bachelor of Pharmacy or Master of Pharmacy qualification is eligible to be appointed.

Lastly, the petitioner has prayed for quashing the decision of the respondent-Commission dated 05.04.2024 whereby and whereunder it has been communicated that a three-member Departmental Expert Committee had examined the objection filed by the petitioner whereupon it has found the candidature of the petitioner to be ineligible.

2. The brief facts of the case, according to the petitioner, are that the petitioner took admission in Pharm D (Doctorate of Pharmacy) Course in Teerthankar Mahaveer University, Moradabad, after passing +2 examination with science and was awarded a degree of Doctor of Pharmacy by the said university on 12.09.2022 in the academic session 2021-22. The respondent-Commission published an advertisement bearing Advertisement No.09 of 2022, dated 22.11.2022 for filling the posts of Drug Inspectors and in clause 3 thereof the educational qualifications have been prescribed which reads as follows:-

“A person who is appointed as Inspector under the Act shall be a person, who has a degree in Pharmacy or Pharmaceutical Sciences or Medicine with specialization in Clinical Pharmacology or Microbiology from a University established in India by law.”

It is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the respondent-Commission has interpreted the term “degree in pharmacy” as mentioned in Rule 49 of the Rules, 1945 as only Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmacy resulting in the candidates, who have directly obtained qualification of degree of Pharm D, without obtaining the qualification of B. Pharm, being rendered ineligible to apply against the aforesaid Advertisement No. 09 of 2022.

3. It is pointed out that in the meantime, one Ronit Kumar Arvind had filed a writ petition bearing CWJC No.4751 of 2023, involving more or less the same issue and by an order dated 19.05.2023, passed by a co-ordinate Bench of this Court, the respondent-Commission was directed to provisionally accept his application form in case the same is filed by 29.05.2023.

Thereafter, the respondent-Commission had issued one important notice dated 23.05.2023, permitting the candidates possessing the qualification of Pharm D to apply for the post of Drug Inspector, subject to out