GUMAN MAL LODHA, J. - (1.) A 'Crackdown' and 'Mass sacking' of University Lecturers (temporary) on change of ruling party by issuing the Governors Ordinance, whether offends the equal protection Clause, is the billion dollar question, raised under the banner of discrimination between 'pre -emergency' and 'post -emergency' appointees by Section 3 of the Ordinance. The 25th June, 1975' having been made the 'Laxaman Rekha','deadline' or 'D Day, for regularisation of services, the ousted post -emergency Lecturers have invoked Article 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India to quash the '25th June, 1975', Arbitrary dead line', a 'brainchild' of the then Vice Chancellors and readily welcomed by the then Government, the ruling party of which is alleged to be anti -emergency.
(2.) THE ruling political parties existence being temporary and changing, in federal democratic Constitution, but the bureaucracy and services, being permanent, unalloyed, and unadulterated bedrock of the State; should the High Court as watch dog and Custodian' of the Constitution, strike down the laws intended to carry out 'mass sacking operations' and 'Crackdown' on 'employees employed by earlier, ruling party', is yet another 'apex' controversy? The pivot of answers in this decision would be ambit, scope and dimensions of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India, detached from the political overtones. Granting that neither 'Lion' and 'Ox' are equal, nor 'Horse' and 'Ass' can be classified in one and the same class for claiming protective necluear umbrealla of Article 14 and 16 of the Constitution; but are pre -emergency lecturers all 'Lions' and 'Horses', and the 'emergency' appointee lecturers are all 'Ox' and 'Ass', is the acid test for deciding this interesting legal debate of equals or inequals, touching new horizons having space age juristic dynamic constitutional dimensions.
(3.) THE golden principle of equality before law though enshrined in the Constitution of India under Articles 14 and 16 is not new to Indian Jurisprudence, The rule of law was well recognised by the great saints and sages and Maharishi Manu gave specific recognition to it in his 'Tenets and Injunctions', although the 'Vara Vyavastha' undermined it.;