SUBRAMANYACHAR Vs. K S R T C

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The above writ petitions are disposed of by this common order as they involve, a question of law which is common to all the writ petitions.

(2.) The petitioners are all employees of the 1st respondent - Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (hereinafter referred to as the Corporation) . They are aggrieved by the resolution passed by the Corporation bearing No 3114 in subject No. 35 at the meeting of its Board on 21-5-1975. The grievance against the resolution is traceable from the consequential orders passed pursuant to the resolution reverting the petitioners from the cadre of Junior Assistants to, the Cadre of Second Division Clerks in which capacity they entered the service of the Corporation, either by the option exercised to serve the corporation on its formation in the year 1961 or having joined the corporation after the Corporation was formed. The consequential order of review of promotion is to be found at Annexure 'G' in W.P. No. 3322 of 1980 and connected matters. The said order of reversion dated 7-2-1980 en masse reverts 96 officials working in different divisions of the Corporation in the State from the post of Junior Assistants to that of clerks. Part-II to that order contains promotions effected purporting to be promotions made pursuant to the directions issued by this Court in several writ petitions ordered earlier. It is necessary here to state that the petitioners have not challenged the promotions given to the persons to be found in part-II of the General Establishment order No. 4360, dated 7-2-1980. Their grievance is only against their reversion.

(3.) The petitioners have, inter alia, contended that though their promotions were temporary, admittedly, the reversion order pursuant to the resolution of the Corporation, which in turn purports to give effect to the directions of this court in other writ petitions, is illegal in asmuch as it is contrary to Regulation 9 of the Cadre and Recruitment Regulations of the Corporation promulgated on 1-2-1968. Sri S. G. Bhat, amongst others learned counsel appearing for the petitioners, has elaborated this contention to mean that by virtue of the reversions now made, the categorisation made of the posts held by them under Regulation 9 as division wide cadre has been set at nought by the impugned order of reversion and the resolution of the corporation to which reference is made earlier.