- (1.) Guru Nanak College at Gurdaspur was a private institution affiliated to Guru Nanak Dev University. The respondent was appointed as Principal of the College by a resolution of the Managing Committee adopted on 27/5/1975. His appointment was approved by the Vice- Chancellor on 30/6/1975 and thereafter he was confirmed on that post with effect from 31/5/1976.
(2.) Guru Nanak College, as also three other colleges were proposed to be taken over by the government under its memo dated 30/9/1982 on the condition that only those staff members who possessed the requisite qualifications wouldalone be absorbed and that too as "new entrants" while the Principal of the college would be brought in as seniormost lecturer and not as Principal. This memorandum was considered by the Managing Committee of the college in its meeting held on 18/5/1983 and was approved. Consequently, a gift deed dated 11/7/1983 was executed between the management of the college and the State government in which the management was described as donors and it was provided, inter alia, as under: " 1. In pursuance of the said agreement, the donors hereby transfer to the government, by way of gift all the properties in the form of buildings, fields, gardens, staff quarters, lands, equipments, furniture, library books, science apparatus and other assets etc. at present attached with the college or standing in the name of the college as are specified in Schedule 'a' including the right of college management and control of the Guru Nanak College, Gurdaspur District, Gurdaspur to have and to hold the same to the government absolutely forever. 2-3 * * * 4. It is agreed that government shall not accept any liability or responsibility for the period prior to the taking over of the college by them. All such liabilities shall be cleared by the Managing Committee of the college concerned. 5. It is agreed that the college on being taken over by the government should not be overstaffed and only such staff will be kept as is justified on the basis of actual workload in accordance with the prescribed norms for different categories of staff. Confirmed and regularly appointed staff through prescribed channels and approved by the University/department will be taken on ad hoc basis subject to the approval of the Punjab public service commission where applicable. 6. It is agreed that such members of the staff of the college as fulfil necessary qualifications and are considered suitable for absorption in government service by the PPSC Subordinate Services Selection Board/departmental Committee shall only be taken over in government service and then treated as new contracts. But the Principal will be taken over only as seniormost lecturer of the college concerned. The government scale in respect of respective categories shall be permissible to them and there shall be no personal grade for anyone. Their pay in the government scale will be fixed on the basis of their length of service in equivalent/identical or higher time-scale. There shall be no guarantee in regard to protecting their existing pay and allowances or any other per fitness. 7. It is further agreed that the staff, subject to their suitability may be regularised but shall, however, be subject to the conditions laid down in clause 8. 8. It is agreed that the members of the staff will be treated as fresh entrants and they will be placed at the bottom of the old government employees in their respective cadre including the Principal who will be absorbed as seniormost lecturer intense (sic) of the concerned college. "
(3.) In pursuance of the aforesaid gift deed, the staff members of the college were absorbed in government service and the respondent who, prior to the takingover of the college by the government, was working as the Principal, was brought in as seniormost lecturer.;