SUMITHRA P Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SINCE common questions of law and fact are involved in all these writ petitions, they are clubbed together, heard and disposed of by this common order.

(2.) THE petitioners are the teaching and non-teaching staff of private aided educational institutions in the State of Karnataka. Some of them are in service and some of them are retired. All of them had joined the service before 2. 9. 1987. All of them have passed either Kannada Language examination as provided in Rule 3 of the Karnataka Civil Services (Service and Kannada Language Examinations) Rules. 1974 (for short 'rules') or the SSLC examination as provided under Rule 5 within the prescribed period. Therefore, they are claiming an additional increment as per Rule 6 on par with the teaching and non-teaching staff of the Government schools in the State of Karnataka. Some of the teaching and non-teaching staff of aided private schools filed writ petitions before this Court claiming the said benefit in W. P. Nos. 25248 to 25302/2004 (Lokanatha Kote B. and others Vs. State of Karnataka and Others ). This Court after considering the rival contentions of the parties, observed as under:

(3.) SEVERAL other writ petitions have been filed by the teaching and non-teaching staff of private aided institutions seeking similar reliefs. This court has disposed of the said writ petitions in terms of B. Lokanatha kote's case (supra ). In the light of the directions of this Court in the aforesaid writ petitions, the first respondent has considered the claim of the petitioners and has passed orders rejecting the same. The petitioners have questioned the validity of the said orders in these writ petitions.