Aniruddha Bose, J. - (1.) The present writ application has been instituted by nine individuals, who are working at present in the posts of lower division clerks (excepting the petitioner No. 4 who is an upper division clerk) in the Uluberia Municipality constituted under the provisions of Bengal Municipal Act 1932. The petitioners were earlier working as Job Assistant/Secretaries of various gram panchayats in the district of Howrah. The Uluberia municipality was constituted in the year 1982 under the provisions of the Bengal Municipal Act, 1932 (1932 Act, in short). At that point of time the area comprised in the gram panchayats in which majority of the petitioners were serving was brought under the coverage of the Uluberia municipality. Subsequently, in the year 1993, another gram panchayat being Rameshwar Nagar was also brought within the jurisdiction of the Uluberia municipality.
(2.) After constitution of the Uluberia municipality, the gram panchayats the territories of which were brought under its jurisdiction ceased to exist or stood reduced in size to the extent the part of their territory came within the territory covered by the Uluberia municipality. As a consequence thereof, all the rights and liabilities as well as funds, properties and assets of these gram panchayats devolved on the Commissioners of the municipality in accordance with the provisions of the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973 (which statute I shall henceforth describe as the 1973 Act). All the employees of these gram panchayats, including the petitioners became the employees of the municipality.
(3.) At that point of time the scale of pay of those working in the posts of job assistant/secretaries in the gram panchayats were at par with the scale of pay of those working as lower division clerks in the municipality.;