SUDHIR NARAIN, J. ( 1 ) THIS Special Appeal has been filed against the Judgment of the learned single Judge whereby the prayer for mandamus commanding the respondents to give admission to the appellant in Diploma Engineering Course in the academic year 1995-96 treating him as internal candidate was rejected. ( 2 ) THE sole question involved in this appeal is whether the appellant is internal candidate of Aligarh Muslim University (hereinafter referred to as the University.) ( 3 ) THE appellant passed Secondary School Certificate Part II (Class X) examination of the University in the year 1991-92. His result of the examination was declared on 9/06/1992. He applied for admission in Diploma Engineering Course for the year 1995-96. The eligibility for admission to Diploma in Engineering Course was Class X. On 13/07/1995 admission test in Diploma Engineering Course was held. On 6/09/1995 the result was declared. ( 4 ) THE University for the purpose of admission test classified the candidates in two categories, one as internal candidate and the other as external candidate. Fifty percent of the seats are reserved for internal candidates and the remaining seats for the external candidates. The appellant was treated as external candidate and he was not shown in the select list of the candidates in Diploma Engineering Course. The appellant claimed that he should be treated as internal candidate and on that basis he should have been called for interview. He filed the writ petition basing his right as an internal candidate but the learned single Judge, interpreting the definition of the internal candidate as provided in the instructions printed in the Guide to Admission Test No. 3 (1995-96.) under the heading "important Information and Rules", held that the appellant cannot be treated as internal candidate. "internal Candidate" has been defined in that Guide Book as under-"an internal candidate is one who has passed the qualifying examination held by this University, as a regular candidate, not earlier than three (3) academic years from the date of admission to the course applied for. " ( 5 ) SRI S. U. Khan, learned counsel for the appellant contended that the appellant had appeared in Class X examination in the year 1992 and in the year 1995 he appeared for the admission test in Diploma Engineering Course and as such he had appeared in the third year in the test after passing the qualifying examination. " ( 5 ) SRI S. U. Khan, learned counsel for the appellant contended that the appellant had appeared in Class X examination in the year 1992 and in the year 1995 he appeared for the admission test in Diploma Engineering Course and as such he had appeared in the third year in the test after passing the qualifying examination. Ho submitted that the words "not earlier than three academic years" should be interpreted as excluding the year in which a candidate had passed the qualifying examination and also excluding the year when he appears for admission test in Diploma Engineering Course. ( 6 ) THE word "academic year" has not been defined in the Guide to Admission Test issued by the University nor any other provision has been shown wherein the word "academic year" has been defined. In the counter affidavit it has been stated that the academic year begins from 16th July of a particular year and ends on 15th July of the subsequent year and this is the practice followed by the University and other Universities. The academic year starts from the year when the admission takes place and continues for a period till the examination test is expected to be completed in the next year. There is no denial that the academic session starts in the month of July. It can be taken that the academic sessions starts in the month of July and ends in the same month in the next succeeding year. ( 7 ) THE appellant had passed Secondary School Certificate II (Class X) examination in the year 1992. His result was declared on 9th July, 1992. The qualifying examination for admission to Diploma Engineering Course is admittedly Secondary School Certificate Part II (Class X) examination. The appellant could have appeared for admission to Diploma Engineering Course in the academic years 1992-93, 1993-94 and 1994-95. In these three academic years the appellant did not appear for admission test. He appeared for admission test in Diploma Engineering Course for the academic year 1995-96 as is clear from receipt of application for Diploma Engineering Course for the year 1995-96 filed as Annexure-2 to the writ petition. ( 8 ) LEARNED counsel for the appellant urged that the admission test in Diploma Engineering Course took place on 13/07/1995 and this should be taken as in the year 1995. This submission cannot be accepted. ( 8 ) LEARNED counsel for the appellant urged that the admission test in Diploma Engineering Course took place on 13/07/1995 and this should be taken as in the year 1995. This submission cannot be accepted. The appellant himself in para 7 of the writ petition stated that he was issued a receipt of application for admission in the Diploma Engineering Course for the year 1995-96. The result of the admission test was declared on 6/09/1995. The Diploma Engineering Course was obviously for 1995-96. The definition of internal candidate as printed in the Guide Book envisages that the candidate must have passed qualifying examination held by the University as a regular candidate not earlier than three academic years from the date of admission to the course applied for. The expression "not earlier than three academic years" in the context means more than three academic years. In other words, a candidate after passing qualifying examination gets three chances to appear in the test to the course applied for. If he does not avail the opportunity, he cannot get the benefit of the category of internal candidate. ( 9 ) IN Sanjay Kumar Agarwal v. Aligarh Muslim University, 1987 UPLBEC 250, the definition of internal candidate as given in the Guide Book of the University quoted above, came up for consideration. The candidate had passed his qualifying examination in the year 1983 and his application for admission was considered by the University in July 1986 but the admission had taken place on 20/09/1986. It was held that the candidate having passed qualifying examination after more than three years from the date of admission to the course applied for, was not entitled to be considered as internal candidate. The relevant date was the actual date of admission to the course applied for and not the date the test for admission was held. ( 10 ) THE appellant had passed qualifying examination in the academic year 1991-92 and thereafter he did not appear for admission in Diploma Engineering Course in three subsequent academic years i. e. 1992-93, 1993-94 and 199495. He applied for Diploma Engineering Course for the academic year 1995-96. The date of the admission test was not relevant but the academic year of the course applied for admission was relevant for the purpose of admission as internal candidate. He applied for Diploma Engineering Course for the academic year 1995-96. The date of the admission test was not relevant but the academic year of the course applied for admission was relevant for the purpose of admission as internal candidate. The appellant having passed the qualifying examination more than three academic years preceding the date of admission to the course applied for, was rightly not treated as internal candidate by the University. ( 11 ) IN the result there is no merit in the appeal and it is accordingly dismissed. The parties shall bear their own costs. Appeal dismissed. .