Holding

A party prevented from complying with a statutory deadline due to a gazetted holiday may fulfill the requirement on the next working day, and such compliance is deemed timely under Section 10 of the General Clauses Act, 1897.

Summary

The appellant applied for the post of Armourer on the prescribed last date of 14 April 2003, which was a gazetted holiday, but could not attach the required medical certificate because the holiday and preceding holidays prevented him from obtaining it; he submitted the certificate on 15 April. The recruiting authority rejected his application for non‑submission of the certificate on the deadline, and the High Court dismissed his writ petitions. The Supreme Court examined whether Section 10 of the General Clauses Act, 1897, which allows acts due on a holiday to be performed on the next working day, applied to his case. Relying on the principle that law does not compel the performance of an impossibility and on several precedents, the Court held that the applicant’s submission on the next working day was timely. Consequently, the High Court’s orders were quashed, the appeal was allowed, and the respondents were directed to consider the appellant’s application within six weeks, with no order as to costs.

Issues considered

Does Section 10 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 apply when the statutory deadline falls on a gazetted holiday?
Can the failure to submit a required medical certificate on the prescribed date, due to holidays, be condoned under Section 10 and principles of equity?
Did the High Court err in rejecting the application without applying Section 10?

Legislation cited

General Clauses Act, 1897s. 10

Subjects

General Clauses ActSection 10computation of timegazetted holidayequityapplication deadlinepublic service recruitmentjudicial reviewcivil appeal

Judgment

[2009] 15 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 1095

MOHD. AYUB A
v.
STATE OF U.P. AND OTHERS
(Civil Appeal No. 8200 of 2009)
NOVEMBER 20, 2009
B
[G.S. SINGHVI AND ASOK KUMAR GANGULY, JJ.].

General Clauses Act, 1897 - s. 10 - Computation of time
- Gazetted holiday on the last date of submitting application
"' for the post alongwith medical certificate - Submission of
application on the last date, however medical certificate on c
the next day - Non-consideration of application - Correctness
of - Held: Party prevent~d from dojng an act by some
circumstances beyond his control can do so at the first
subsequent opportunity - Object is to enable a person to do
what he could have done on a holiday on the next working D
day - Candidate could not obtain medical certificate since last
,) day was a Gazetted holiday and previous days were also
holidays - He obtained medical certificate the next day and
submitted it on that day itself - Hence1 application to be
considered in view of s. 10 and the principle of equity - Equity. E
For the post of Armourer, the last date of submitting
the application along with the medical certificate was
14.04.2003 Appellant submitted his application for the said
post on 14.04.2003 but the medical certificate was
} submitted on 15.04.2003. Appellant's application was not F
considered. He filed a writ petition. He stated that
14.04.2003 was a gazetted holiday and previous days were
also holidays and as such he could not get the medical
certificate by 14.04.2003. Single Judge of High Court
dismissed the petition. Division Bench of High Court G
upheld the same. Hence the present appeal.
Allowing the appeal, the Court
).
HELD: 1:There is a general principle that a party,
1095 H
1096 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2009] 15 (AODL.) S.C.R.

A prevented from doing an act for some i"easons beyond his
control, can do so at the first subsequent opportunity. The
underlying object of s.1 O of the General Clauses Act, 1897
is to enable a person to do what he should have done in a
holiday, on the next working day. The said principle is
.,.
B based on doctr.ine that law does not compel the
performance of an impossibility. [Para 15] (1101-B-D]
Huda and another v. Dr. Babeswar Kanhar and another
I

(2005) 1 sec 191 - relied on.
"'
{H.H. Raja) Harinder Singh v. S. Kamai/ Singh and others
c AIR 1957 SC 271; Ghaganti Satyanarayana and others v. State
of Andhra Pradesh (1986) 3 SCC 141; N. Sureya Reddy v.
State of Orissa 1985 Cri LJ 939 (Ori); Hossain Ally v. Donzelle
ILR (1880) 5 Cal 906, referred to.

D 2.1. The last date of submitting the application along
with medical certificate was 14th of April, 2003, which was
a gazetted holiday on account of Ambedkar Jayanti. The "·
application of the applicant was incomplete only because
it did not contain the medical certificate. The explanation
of the appellant is that in view of the 14th April being a
E
holiday and the previous days were also holidays, he
could not obtain the medical certificate and he obtained it
on the very next day i.e. 15th April and submitted it on that
day itself. In these circumstances, his application should
have been considered on merit in view of the principles
F laid down ins. 10 of the General Clauses Act, 1897. [Paras '
9 and ,10] [1100-A-C]
2.2. Both the Single Judge and the Appellate '3ench
ofthe High Court failed to take into consideration the
provision of s. 10 of the Act and the principles of equity
G
which are embodied in the said provision. The decisions
of the Single Judge and that of the Division Bench of the
High Court are not· based ori sound principles. The order
of the Single Bench and Division Bench is quashed as
also the order dated 02.07.2003 passed by the respondent
H
.
MOHD. AYUB v. STATE OF U.P. AND ORS. 1097

..._ No.3-DIG, PAC Barriely section. The application filed by the A
appellant on the post of Constable Amorer Course is valid
and should be considered as valid and the respondents
are directed to take steps on the same in accordance with
law. (Paras 7, 16 and 17] [1099-D; 1101-E-G]
Case Law Reference: B
AIR 1957 SC 271 Referred to. Para 11
(1986) 3 sec 141 Referred to. Para 13
"'
1985 Cri LJ 939 Referred to. Para 14
(2005) 1 sec 191 Relied on. Para 15 c
ILR (1880) 5 Cal 906 Referred to. Para 15
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 8200
of 2009.
From the Judgment & Order dated 9.9.2008 of the High D
J Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench, Lucknow U.P.
in Special Appeal No. 513 (SB) of 2008.
B.P. Singh, Dhakray, R.K. Singh, Shakti Singh Dhakray, Dr.
Kailash Chand for the Appellant.
S.8. Upadhyay, S.K. Dwivedi, AAG, Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, E
Gunnam Venkateswara Rao for the Respondents.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
GANGULY, J.
Leave granted. F
1. This appeal is directed against the judgment and order
dated 09.09.2008 passed by the Division Bench of High Court
of Allahabad, Lucknow Bench, Lucknow in Special Appeal No.
513 (S/S) 2008 whereby the learned Judges of the Division
Bench were pleased to affirm the view taken by the Learned G
Single Judge in judgment and order dated 18.08.2008 by which
'> the Writ Petition No. 5554 (S/S) of 2003 filed by the appellant
was dismissed.

H
1098 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [20D9] 15 (.A.DDL.) S C.R.

A 2. The material facts of the case are that information was >
circulated by the Commandant llnd battalion. PAC Sitapur, 4th
Respondent on 10.04.2003 to all the Branch lncharge/.
Commandant to make available the nominations of the constable
having certain qualifications for the post of Armourer (herein after
B referred as said post). It was made clear that applications of the
interested candidates will be made available to the Head Office
by 14.04.2003 and no application sent thereafter will be
considered.
3. It was also mentioned therein that a medical certificate
c .from the Chief Medical Officer as per category A was required
to be sent along with the application and no application would
be accepted without the medical certificate.
4. The appellant submitted his ·application along with
educational qualification on 14.04.2003. The medical certificate
D admittedly was not attached with this application dated
I...
14.04.2003 but the medical certificate was submitted on
15.04.2003. In his Writ Petition, the appellant stated that there
was a gazetted holiday on account of Ramnavami on 11th April,
12th April was closed for second Saturday, Sunday was on 13th
E April and Ambedkar-Jayanti was on 14th April. As such from
11th April to 14th April 2003, the appellant could not get the
medical certificate. He got the medical certificate on 15.04.2003
and submitted the same on 15.04.2003 itself. The appellant
further stated that his name was not considered because he
F submitted his application on 14.04.2003 along with the
educational certificates. However, even though he submitted his
medical certificates on the next available day i.e. 15.04.2003,
even then his application was not considered.
...
5. Aggrieved by this action of the respondent the appellant
G filed a writ petition No.2657 (SS) of 2003 before the High Court.
The Hon'ble High Court vide its order dated 14.05.2003 directed
the Respondent No.3-DIG, PAC Barriely section to pass a -<
speaking order on the representation filed by the appellant. The
substance of the said order is that since the appellant submitted
H his application with the educational qualifi.cations on 14.04.2003
MOHD. AYUB v. STATE OF U.P. fa.ND ORS. 1099
[ASOK KUMAR GANGULY, J.]
but submitted the medical certificate on 15.04.2003, the same A
. ~ could not be considered for the post of Armourer for non-
production of medical certificate. It was stated in the impugned
order of Respondent No. 2 dated 02.07.2003 the appellant is
himself responsible for the delay in submission and as such his
application is liable to be dismissed. B
6. Challenging the said order dated 02.07.2003, the
appellant filed another writ petition no. 5554 (S/S) of 2003. The
said writ petition was also rejected on the same grounds on which
the representation of the appellant was dismissed. The Appellate
Bench of the High Court also took the same view and dismissed c
the appeal by affirming the decision taken by the learned Single
Judge.
7. It appears that both the learned Single Judge and the
Appellate Bench of the High Court failed to take into
consideration the provision of Section 10 of General Clauses D
) Act and the principles of equity which are embodied in the said
provision.
8. The provisions of Section 10 of General Clauses Act are
set out below:-
E
"10. Computation of time. -(1) Where, by any Central
Act or regulation made after the commencement of this Act,
any act or proceeding is directed or allowed to be done or
taken in any court or office on a certain day· or within a
.J
prescribed period, then, if the Court or office is closed on
that day or the last day of the prescribed period, the act or F
proceeding shall be considered as done or taken in due
time if it is done or taken on the next day afterwards on which

- the Court or office is open:
Provided that nothing in this Section shall apply to any
act or proceeding to which the Indian Limitation Act, 1877
G
(15 of 1877), applies .
(
• (2) This section applies also to all Central Acts and
Regulations made on or after the fourteenth day of January,
1887."
H
1100 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2009] 15 (ADDL.) S.C.R.

A 9. It is common ground that the last date of submitting the
application along with medical certificate was 14th of April, >- '
2003, which was a gazetted holiday on account of Ambedkar
Jayanti. The application of the applicant was incomplete only
because it did not contain the· medical certificate. The
B explanation of the appellant is that in view of the 14th April being ;,

a holiday and the previous days were also holidays, he could not
obtain the medical certificate and he obtained it on the very next
day i.e. 15th April and submitted it on that day itself.
10. In these circumstances, his application should have
c been considered on merit in view of the principles laid down Jn
Section 10 of General Clauses Act.
11. Section 10 of the General Clauses Act has come up for
consideration in various cases before this Court and also
different High Courts. In the case of (H.H. Raja)Harinder Singh
D v. S. Kamai/ Singh and others, AIR 1957 SC 271, a four-Judge
Bench of this Court explained the object of Section 10 very lucidly.
I.._.
The learned Judges have held as under:-
·" ... Where, therefore, a period is prescribed for the "
performance of an act in a Court or office, and that period·
E expires on a holiday, then according to the section the Act
should be considered to have been done within that period,
if it is done on tile next day on which the Court or office is
open. For that section to apply, therefore, all that is requisite
is that there should be a period prescribed and that period
F should expire on a holiday." (Page 273 of the report) ~

12. The decision in the case of Harinder Singh (supra) was
rendered in the context of an election dispute but the general
principles explained therein apply to all cases.
13. Even while construing the provisions of Section 167 of
G Criminal Procedure Code, 1961, this Court accepted the same
interpretation in respect of Section 10 of the General Clauses
Act. [See Ghaganti Satyanarayana and others v. State of
Andhra Pradesh, ( 1986) 3 SCC 141. (para 30 page 154 of the
•'
report)}. ·
H
MOHD. AYUB v. STATE OF U.P. AND ORS. 1101
[ASOK KUMAR GANGULY, J.]
14. The learned Judges in Chaganti (supra) accepted the A
interpretation of Section 10 in the case of N. Sureya Reddy v.
State of Orissa, 1985 Cri LJ 939 (Ori), and held that the principle
enunciated in Section 10 of General Clauses Act should be
invoked on consideration of justice and expediency.
15. Rather recently in the case of Huda and another v. Dr. B
Babeswar Kanhar and another, (2005) 1 SCC 191, this Court
held that there is a general principle that a party, prevented from
doing an act for some reasons beyond his control, can do so at
the first subsequent opportunity. The learned Judges further
elaborated by saying that the underlying object of Section 10 is C
to enable a person to do what he should have done in a holiday,
on the next working day. The learned Judges held that the said
principle is based on doctrine that law does not compel the
performance of an impossibility. In saying so, the learned
Judges relied on an old decision of Calcutta High Court in the o
case of Hossein Ally v. Donze/le, ILR (1880) 5 Cal 906. This
Court is in respectful agreement with the aforesaid principles.
16. Therefore, this Court holds that the decisions of the
learned Single Judge and that of the Division Bench of the High
Court, which have been impugned before us are not based on E
sound principles. The order of the Single Bench dated 18.8.2008
is quashed as also the order dated 02.07.2003 passed by the
respondent No.3-DIG, PAC Barriely section. Accordingly, the
order of the Division Bench dated 9.9.2008 is also quashed.
17. The application filed by the appellant on the post of F
Constable Amorer Course is valid and should be considered as
valid and the respondents are directed to take steps on the same
in accordance with law and within a period of six weeks from the
date of service of this order upon them.
18. The appeal is thus allowed. There shall be no order as G
to costs.
N.J. Appeal allowed.

H