MATHUR, J. - (1.) ALL these writ petitions involve common questions of law and facts, therefore, they are disposed of by this common order.
(2.) FOR the convenient disposal of all these writ petitions the facts given in the case of Kailash Gupta & others vs. State of Rajasthan & another (S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 978 of 1992) are taken into consideration. The petitioners by this writ petition have prayed that by an appropriate writ, order or direction the Rajasthan Public Service Commission, Ajmer may be directed to allow the petitioners to apply for the posts of Agriculture Officers advertised by the Rajasthan Public Service Commission vide Advertisement No. 9/91- 92. It is also prayed that the Condition No. 6 of the Information Booklet published by the Rajasthan Public Service Commission, requiring the candidates to possess the qualifications on 28.2.1992 may be quashed. The petitioners were students of M.Sc. (Agriculture), Final Semester, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Udaipur a Unit of the Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner. The M.Sc. (Agriculture) Final Written Examination of the petitioners was held in the month of November, 1991 and only thesis work was not submitted and the result was to be declared after the submission of the thesis. The petitioners after passing the M.Sc. (Agriculture) final Examination are entitled to be considered for appointment to the post of Agriculture Officer advertised by the Rajasthan Public Service Commission, Ajmer (referred to hereinafter as 'the respondent Commission') vide Advertisement No. 9/91-92. A copy of the Information Booklet in relation to the aforesaid advertisement has been placed on the record as Annex.l. The last date for submission of the application fixed by the respondent Commission was 28.2.1992. The Rajasthan Agricultural Service Rules, 1960 (referred to hereinafter as 'the Rules of 1960') govern the service conditions of the petitioners. The advertisement required that the applicant must passes the qualifications on the last date fixed for submission/receipt of the applications by the respondent Commission. It is alleged that the fixation of the qualifications on the last date of the application is arbitrary and discriminatory. It is alleged that even the Union Public Service Commission does not insist that the applicant should be eligible on the last date of submission of the application fixed by the Commission and it also permits the candidates provisionally subject to their passing in the qualifying examination. It is alleged that the object of holding of the examination by the Commission is to select the best candidatures from amongst those who are eligible for to the post. It is alleged that all those who are qualified and eligible to be appointed at the time of the appointment, are entitled to be considered for appointment subject to the condition that they qualify the examination held by the Commission. It is alleged that the post of Agriculture Officer has been advertised after a lapse of 5 years and it is not known as to when the posts will be advertised again. It is also alleged that all the petitioners were students of M.Sc. (Agriculture) final examination which was scheduled to be held but, before the date of the final examination, the posts were advertised by the respondent Commission. These petitioners were permitted to appear in the written examination under the orders of this Court dated 26.2.1992 and it is alleged that some of them have passed the examination but those who have passed are not being called for interview because on the last date they were not possessing the qualifications i.e. degree of M.Sc. (Agr. ). A reply has been filed by the respondent Commission and the respondent Commission has taken the position that those candidates who have obtained the requisite qualification on 28.2.1992 are only eligible to appear in the examination. The candidates who have acquired the educational qualification i.e. M.Sc. (Agriculture) after this date in response to the aforesaid advertisement cannot be held to be eligible for the post of Agriculture Officer as on the date i.e. 28.2.1992 they were not M.Sc. (Agriculture ). It is submitted that the Commission is an autonomous body and it can regulate its own business by laying down the procedure and in terms of that autonomy the Commission has issued the advertisement that the candidate should be eligible on the last date of submission of the application and such fixation of the last date cannot be said to be arbitrary. It is also pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioners that meanwhile some of the petitioners have already passed the M.Sc. (Agriculture) examination and also passed the written examination conducted by the respondent Commission for short listing the candidates but still those candidates have not been called for interview for the reason that on the last date of submission of the applications these candidates were not having the degree of M.Sc. (Agriculture ). Mr. Purohit, learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that Rules 21 of the Rules of 1960 deals with the scrutiny of applications. Rules of 1960 no where require that the candidate should be eligible on the last date for submission of the application. Rule 21 of the Rules of 1960 only says that after receipt of the application the Commission shall scrutinies the applications. Learned counsel further submitted that it is the normal practice that the ad-vertisement for the posts are issued with long intervals and on account of insisting on the condition that the candidates should have obtained the necessary academic qualifications on the last date for filing of the applications, the candidates, who are likely to became eligible in that year will have to wait for 5 years. Therefore, the Commission should have considered the applications of all those candidates who have already appeared for final examination of the M.Sc. (Agriculture) and if they have cleared the M.Sc. (Agriculture) Final Examination before the interview after passing the written test then the candidature of such candidates should not be rejected merely on the ground that on the last date for submission of the applications they were not eligible.
(3.) AS against this, Mr. Joshi, learned counsel appearing for the respondent Commission, submitted that the fixation of the last date is the prerogative of the Commission as the Commission is an autonomous body and it can always fix the last date for holding the examination and in that exercise of administrative power the Commission has fixed the last date for filing the application i.e. 28.2.1992 and on that that the candidate is required to be eligible otherwise it will operate as discriminatory. I have considered the rival submissions of the learned counsel for the parties and have also perused the record. It is true that the Commission while advertising the post has to fix some date for filing of the applications and the candidate should be eligible on that date. But I also cannot lost sight of the fact that the posts are not advertised frequently by the Commission because of the pressure of work on it and the posts are advertised with longer intervals. But so far as the fixation of the last date for submission of the applications by the Commission is concerned, it is definitely the prerogative of the Commission as it is the Commission which has to regulate its business and, therefore, it is necessary for the Commission to fix the last date for filing of the applications and the candidate is normally required to be eligible in all respects on the last date of submission of the applications. In the present case, the basic qualifications for the post of Agricultural Officer is M,Sc. (Agriculture) and it is a fact that on the last date for submission of the applications i.e. 28.2.1992 the petitioners were not eligible as they have not awarded the degree of M.Sc. (Agriculture ). Though the written test was held and the thesis was submitted yet the result was not declared. Therefore, it is a fact that on the last date the petitioners were not having the degree of M.Sc. (Agriculture) i.e. they were not holding the qualification required for the post. ;