Judgment M.Y.Eqbal, J. 1. In these two writ applications, since common questions of law and facts are involved and a similar relief has been sought for, these applications are disposed of by this common order. 2. The petitioners have prayed for quashing the condition prescribed in paragraph 15.5 Clause (gha) of the prospectus wherein the age limit of 17 years as on 1.7.1997 has been fixed for appearing in the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination, 1997, (hereinafter to be referred to as the B.C.E.C.E. 1997) as one of the eligibility criteria for admission in session 1997-98, and for direction to fix the cut-off date as 31.12.1997 for completing 17 years of age for appearing in the said examination. Further, prayer has been made for directing respondent No. 3, Controller of Examination to allow the petitioners son and daughter who have applied for appearing in the said examination and to publish their results. 3. The case of the petitioners is that since long the respondents have fixed the minimum age of 17 years as on 31st December of that year being one of the conditions for eligibility in appearing in the entrance examination. In the last year also, the respondents in their prospectus for Combined Medical Education Entrance Test, 1996, fixed 17 years to be completed by the candidate on or before 31st December, 1996. It is stated that the minimum age limit for the candidates appearing in the CBSC All India Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Entrance Examination, 1997, is 17 years as on 31st December, 1997. Not only that for all such medical entrance examinations either conducted or to be conducted this year by all the Institutions, minimum age has been fixed as 17 years as on 31st December, 1997. The petitioners have given list of those institutions throughout India where the age limit is prescribed as 17 years on 31st December, 1997. It is alleged that in complete departure from the last year criteria of fixing the cut off date and ignoring the criteria fixed throughout India, the respondents have changed the age limit in the prospectus of B.C.E.C.E. 1997 by prescribing that the age should be 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. It is alleged that in complete departure from the last year criteria of fixing the cut off date and ignoring the criteria fixed throughout India, the respondents have changed the age limit in the prospectus of B.C.E.C.E. 1997 by prescribing that the age should be 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. According to the petitioners, the condition of eligibility is not only complete departure from the previous years criteria, but is also not in consonance with the criteria fixed by the order All India Competitive Examinations for admission in the medical courses and is also at variance with the criteria fixed by the CBSE who will be sponsoring 15% of the admissions in the Medical College of Bihar. The action of the respondents is, therefore, completely arbitrary, whimsical and un-reasonable. It is stated that the petitioners son/daughter, because of the age criteria fixed by the respondents have been deprived of appearing in the said examination. It is stated that the petitioners son/daughter represented to respondent No. 3 in June, 1997 itself requesting him to allow them to appear in the said examination and those representations followed by reminders, but no action was taken by the respondents. The petitioners, therefore, challenged the age limit prescribed by the respondents as illegal and arbitrary. 4. A counter affidavit has been filed on behalf of the respondents wherein stand has been taken that the State Government exercising its power under the provisions of Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Act, 1995 (hereinafter to be referred to as the Act, for short) constituted a Board, namely, Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board (hereinafter to be referred to as the Board for short) for conducting Combined Entrance Examination for the year 1997. It is stated that earlier different competitive Examinations were being held for admission in Engineering, Medical, Agricultural and similar other degree courses having different upper and lower age limits. In view of the Combined Entrance Examination, a common age limit has been prescribed for the examinees. The said Board has decided to keep the minimum age limit as 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. It is stated that the Board has been empowered under Sec. 6(ii) of the Act to take necessary decisions in implementation of the Act and, therefore, the Board has acted within its power to fix the minimum age limit. The said Board has decided to keep the minimum age limit as 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. It is stated that the Board has been empowered under Sec. 6(ii) of the Act to take necessary decisions in implementation of the Act and, therefore, the Board has acted within its power to fix the minimum age limit. It is further stated in the counter affidavit that while prescribing criteria, syllabus, eligibility and other conditions, the Board deliberated in each issue and formulated the terms and conditions incorporated in the prospectus. While determining the cut off date for age as eligibility it has been taken into consideration that different courses in the State of Bihar did not have any uniform criteria. Lastly it is stated that in the State of Bihar generally result of Intermediate level is declared in the month of June and July and, thereafter. Therefore, cut off date i.e. 1st July will not adversely effect the interest of the students passing out Intermediate level examinations from the college in Bihar. So far the maintainability of the writ application is concerned, it is stated that in the advertisement it was clearly mentioned that the, applicants should be 17 years on 1.7.1997. The petitioners though fully aware about the condition, did not choose to challenge the same at the time of making application. The petitioners, therefore, cannot be allowed to challenge the said condition after their applications have been rejected by the respondents on the ground of age. 5. Admittedly prior to 1997 the minimum age limit for appearing in the entrance examination was 17 years as on 31 December, of that year. For the first time, according to the respondents, the age criterion has been changed by the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board constituted under the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Act, 1995. The Board decided to get the minimum age limit as 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. 6. Mr. Anwar, learned Counsel for the petitioners, firstly tried to establish that the action of the Board is discriminatory inasmuch as admittedly 15% seats are reserved for the students who come through C.B.S.C. All India Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Examination, 1997 and for those students, the minimum age prescribed is 17 years as on 31st December, 1997. 6. Mr. Anwar, learned Counsel for the petitioners, firstly tried to establish that the action of the Board is discriminatory inasmuch as admittedly 15% seats are reserved for the students who come through C.B.S.C. All India Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Examination, 1997 and for those students, the minimum age prescribed is 17 years as on 31st December, 1997. 1 find force in the submission of the learned Counsel for the reason that not only C.B.S.C., All India Pre-Medical Entrance Examination, but in other Medical Entrance Examination Conducted by other agencies, the minimum age has been prescribed as 17 years as on 31st December of that year. For better appreciation, the list of those Institutions mentioned in paragraph No. 7 of the writ application is reproduced herein below: Name of the Institution (1) Eligibility Criteria (2) of age (A) All India Pie-Medical/Pre-Dental, 17 years at the time of admission or Examination, 1997. CBSE will complete the age on or before 31st December, of the year of his/her admission. (B) All India Institute of Medical To attain the age of 17 years of 31st Science, New Delhi-AIIMS December of the year of the admission. (C) Banaras Hindu University To complete the age of 17 years but have not crossed the age of 25 years on or before 31st December, 1997. (D) Arms Forces Medical College, 17 Years on 31st December, 1997. Pune (E) Manipal Academy of Higher Born on or before 31st December, Education (Deemed University) 1980. (F) Joint Entrance Examination, Between 17 and 25 years as on Orissa, 1997. 31st December, 1997. (G) Bharti Vidyapeeth (Deemed 17 years on or before 1st January, University), Pune Entrnace 1998. Examination, 1997. 7. I have gone through the Prospectus of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Pre-Medical Test And Pharmach Admission Test, of Banaras Hindu University, Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Joint Entrance Examination, Engineering and Medical, 1997, Orissa, and Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune, which have been annexed as Annexure-4 series. In all these prospectus the minimum age limit prescribed is 17 years as on 31st December, of that year or thereafter. In all these prospectus the minimum age limit prescribed is 17 years as on 31st December, of that year or thereafter. I have perused the impugned prospectus (Annexure-5) published by the respondents for conducting the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination, 1997, In paragraph 7 of the counter affidavit, the respondents have stated that earlier different Competitive Examinations for admission to Engineering, Medical, Agricultural and other degree courses were being held separately and there were different age criteria for appearance in those examination but in view of the Combined Entrance Examination a common age limit has been prescribed for the examinees. This statement of the respondents does not appear to be correct. 1 found that in the impugned prospectus (Annexure-5) in one clause the minimum age fixed for appearance in Engineering Entrance Examination is 17 years as on 1st July, 1997, but it is mentioned that for other Regional Engineering Colleges the age limit fixed by the Rule shall apply. In Clause 15.5 the age limit for appearance in 1997 Medical Entrance Examination has been fixed as 17 years as on 1st July, 1997. The stand of the respondents is that the Board constituted under the Act of 1995 is empowered under Sec. 6(ii) to take decision fixing the age limit for appearance in the Entrance Examination. Although Sec. 6 of the Act empowered the Board to take decision for the implementation of the provisions of the Act but nowhere in the Act a blanket power has been given to the Board for prescribing for conditions of eligibility including the age criterion for appearance in the Examination. Even if the Board is empowered to take decision, I am of the opinion that the decision must be rational and in consonance with the regulations time to time framed by the Medical Council of India and also the criteria fixed by the Institutions through out India. In order to remove all these anomalies and discriminations in the rules regulations the Apex Court right from beginning has been observing that an independent statutory body should be constituted for conducting the All India Entrance Examination. In the case of Dinesh Kumar V/s. Moti Lal Nehru Medical College -- , the Apex Court has given a guideline by making necessary modifications in the scheme submitted by the Government of India for conducting All India Entrance Examination. 8. In the case of Dinesh Kumar V/s. Moti Lal Nehru Medical College -- , the Apex Court has given a guideline by making necessary modifications in the scheme submitted by the Government of India for conducting All India Entrance Examination. 8. Be that as it may, keeping in view the age limit fixed by the other authorities which are conducting the Medical Entrance Examination, I am of the definite view that the same criteria should be followed by the Board while conducting Entrance Examination in Bihar. It is surprising that the students completing their 17 years of age after 1st July, 1997, shall be eligible for admission in the same Medical College if the said students come through C.B.S.E. Entrance Examination but the students who do not complete 17 years as on July, 1997, shall not be eligible for appearing in the Entrance Examination if they come through the Entrance Examination conducted by the Bihar Entrance Examination. The stand of the respondents in the counter-affidavit is that in the State of Bihar generally the result of Intermediate level is declared in the month of June and July every year, therefore, the cut off date of 1st July will not adversely affect the interest of the students passing out Intermediate leave examination from the colleges in Bihar. There is fallacy in the stand taken by the respondents. It is not a secret fact that how the education in Bihar is lagging behind. The State of Bihar is known to all for the delayed sessions and also that the results are not published in time. In my opinion, therefore, the cut off date i.e. 1st July will rather adversely affect the interest of the students passing out Intermediate Level Examination from the colleges in Bihar. 9. Having regard to facts and circumstances of the case, I am of the view that the age criterion fixed in Clause 15.5 (gha) of the prospectus of Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination, 1997, is irrational and unreasonable and is liable to be struck down. 10. In the result, these writ applications are allowed and the age limit fixed in the prospectus of 1997 is declared as irrational and unreasonable. 10. In the result, these writ applications are allowed and the age limit fixed in the prospectus of 1997 is declared as irrational and unreasonable. However, the respondents, particularly the Board is directed to fix the minimum age limit of 17 years as on 31st December, of that year for the future examinations that may be conducted by the Board in the State of Bihar. It is made clear, that the benefit of this judgment shall be confined only to these two writ petitioners who have come to this Court and who were allowed in terms of interim order dated 30.7.97 to appear in the Entrance Examination. The respondents shall now publish the results of examinations of these two petitioners and if they qualify they shall be called for interview and for admission in the Medical Colleges.