Delhi High Court Disqualifies Candidate Over Failure To Submit Documents On Time, Directs DSSSB To Amend Selection Process
The Delhi High Court allowed a writ petition which challenged an order issued by the Central Administrative Tribunal Principal Bench in New Delhi pertaining to a selection process conducted by the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) for the post of Supervisor Grade-II (reserved for female candidates under the Scheduled Caste category) directing the DSSSB to amend its selection process particularly with regard to the submission of documents by the candidates to obviate the cancellation of candidature/appointment of candidate, who is shortlisted for appointment, only on the ground that the documents have not been uploaded.
A Division Bench of Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta observed that “The respondent has not given any bona fide reason for not uploading the documents. No doubt, the respondent did made a further representation on May 16, 2017 but having taken a stand at the first instance in her representation dated May 15, 2017, it must be held that the respondent did not upload the documents for the reasons best known to her. In the absence of the documents been uploaded before the cut-off date, the consequence must flow”
The respondent, who was shortlisted for the post, encountered technical difficulties while trying to upload her e-Dossier for document verification. She later submitted her documents through speed post. However, the DSSSB issued a corrigendum that removed her name from the list of provisionally nominated candidates due to the failure to upload her documents.
The Tribunal had allowed the original application quashing the corrigendum. The Tribunal ordered the DSSSB to verify the respondent's hard copy documents and recommend her for appropriate appointment if she met the eligibility criteria.
Advocate Gaurav Dhingra appeared for the Petitioners and Advocate A.K. Bhakta appeared for the Respondent.
The petitioner was contesting the Tribunal's decision, arguing that the Tribunal's direction to accept and verify the documents of the respondent in hard copy format and recommend her for appointment was not justified.
In analyzing the situation, the Court compared the facts of this case with those of similar cases. The Court noted that the respondent's representation indicated that she could not upload her documents due to technical issues, and she did not provide a valid reason for her failure to upload them. Therefore, the Court concluded that since the documents were not uploaded before the cut-off date, the consequence of her disqualification was warranted.
The Court emphasized the importance of adhering to deadlines and noted that granting relaxation to one candidate could be discriminatory towards others who faced similar issues. The Court cited precedents where petitions with comparable circumstances were dismissed based on these principles.
Ultimately, the Court allowed the petition, setting aside the Tribunal's order. The Court also directed the DSSSB to revise its selection process to allow candidates to upload their documents during the application submission itself, thereby preventing similar issues in the future.
“It shall call upon the candidates to upload their documents showing their eligibility and caste etc. at the time of submission of the application itself so that even if in the eventuality a candidate is unable to upload the documents after the results are announced, the DSSSB can rely / consider the documents uploaded by a candidate at the time of the submission of the application and verify the same for further action in the selection process.” the Bench held.
Cause Title: Govt Of NCT Of Delhi & Ors. v. Sheetal, 2023:DHC:6112-DB
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