STATE OF PUNJAB Vs. AROOR CHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This order will dispose of a bunch of six Letters Patent Appeals nos. 30 to 36 of 1992 which involve common questions of law and fact.

(2.) The respondents were working as Drivers, conductors, carpenters, Assistant Clerks and Electricians with Punjab Roadways when the State of Punjab took a Policy decision to transfer some of its buses to the Municipal Corporations of Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana. These buses were to be plied and operated by the respective corporations, Consequently, some of the staff which was necessary to operate the buses had also to be transferred to the corporations along with the vehicles. Options were invited from the employees but only few opted for their transfer. The State Government, therefore, decided to sent the employees on the principle of last come first go. The employees including some of the respondents herein represented against their transfers on the ground that the terms and conditions of the employees with the corporations were less favourable than their existing terms with the State of Punjab, some of them filed civil writ petition No. 4350 of 1980 (Ajmer Lal and others vs. State of Punjab.) challenging the orders of the Director State Transport, Punjab, transferring their services to the corporations which was allowed by a learned single Judge of this Court on May,7,1981 and it was held that the action of the State Government was illegal and beyond its jurisdiction, Another similar writ petition No. 5746 of 1982 (Avtar Singh Inspector vs. State of Punjab and others) came up before a Division Bench and was allowed at the motion state as the same was covered by the ratio of the decision in Ajmer Lal's case . The State of Punjab went up in appeal to the Supreme Court in Avtar Singh's case which was disposed of with the following observations:-

(3.) This order shall not however be treated as precedent.