(1.) These appeals are directed against a common judgment dated 01.06.2021 [hereafter referred to as "impugned judgment", passed by the learned single judge in various writ petitions.
(2.) The appellant before us is Air India Limited [hereafter referred to as 'AIL']. The respondents, in each of these appeals, are pilots who were employed by AIL. For the sake of convenience, they will be collectively referred to as "pilots", unless the context requires them to be described otherwise.
(3.) Although the record filed before us is huge and expansive, the central issue which arises for consideration veers around the following.