Rules of the Game Doctrine

The rules of the game doctrine requires a public authority to conduct recruitment according to the eligibility conditions and selection criteria declared when the process begins. It ordinarily prevents those rules from being altered midway or after selection so as to disadvantage candidates. The doctrine protects fairness, transparency and equality in public employment.

Constitutional foundation

Public recruitment must conform to equality before law under Article 14 and equality of opportunity in public employment under Article 16. Changing selection standards after candidates have entered or completed the process may produce arbitrary or unequal treatment.

What the doctrine requires

• The recruiting authority must disclose eligibility requirements, assessment methods and qualifying standards before applying them to candidates.
• Candidates must be assessed by the same announced standards throughout the recruitment process.
• A new cut-off, minimum interview mark or selection condition cannot ordinarily be introduced after the relevant assessment has been conducted.
• In K. Manjusree v. State of Andhra Pradesh, the Supreme Court disapproved the introduction of minimum interview marks after interviews had been completed.

Scope and qualification

The doctrine is not an absolute prohibition on every modification. In Tej Prakash Pathak v. Rajasthan High Court, the Supreme Court clarified that a change may be permissible when authorised by the governing service rules or recruitment advertisement, but it must still satisfy Article 14.

• Any permissible change must be transparent, non-arbitrary and rationally connected with the object of recruitment.
• Where governing rules are silent, the authority may devise a fair procedure, but it cannot use procedural discretion to discriminate between similarly placed candidates.
• Inclusion in a select list does not by itself create an indefeasible right to appointment, although the State cannot refuse appointment arbitrarily.