In Brief
The Supreme Court dismissed appeals by eight candidates who were excluded from interview for the Rajasthan Civil Judge Examination 2021 because they lacked valid OBC-NCL, MBC-NCL, or EWS category certificates as of the application deadline (31.08.2021). Although the Advertisement did not explicitly state a certificate issuance deadline, a subsequent notice clarified the requirement based on government circulars specifying that such certificates are valid for one year, extendable to three years with affidavits. The Court held that eligibility must be assessed as of the application deadline. Relying on binding precedent and regulatory law governing the dynamic nature of NCL status, the Court found the Subsequent Notice lawful and rejected the candidates' pleas for relaxation, as no discretionary clause permitted deviation from the rules.
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