MADAN, J. - (1.) THE aforementioned 35 writ petitions filed under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India, have come before us on a reference made by learned Single Judge of this court vide his common order, dated 2. 9. 1993 for deciding the identical question of law raised in the above writ petitions, in the matter concerning the interpretation of Ministerial Staff service Regulations, 1962 of the Rajasthan State Electricity Board (hereinafter referred to as "r. S. E. B" ). Since the above writ petitions are all connected matters involving the identical questions of law, they are being disposed of by this single common order which shall be operative in all the matters.
(2.) FOR the sake of convenience, it shall be appropriate to refer the facts of civil writ petition No. 6916/92, Purshottamlal vs. R. S. E. B. The petitioner, Purshottamlal joined service of The R. S. E. B. on 10. 11. 1978 as Peon (Class IV ). He was appointed as Lower Division Clerk (FOR short LDC) by order, dated 26. 03. 1984, in which his name has been shown at serial No. 19. After completion of 10 years of service including service as class IV servant, the petitioner was given benefit of additional increments. According to the petitioner on the basis of the Arbitration Award given by Shri Mohan Mukherji and Shri Gopeshwar pay scales of the employees belonging to different cadres of the service of R. S. E. B. , were revised. Pay scale of the post of L. D. C. was Rs. 370-570, which was subsequently revised to 530- 740. At the time of appointment as LDC the petitioner was drawing Rs. 801. 46 as Helper and his revised pay was fixed at Rs. 786. 30. Respondents did not follow proper principle of fixation of pay of the petitioner and this resulted in virtual reduction of the pay of the petitioner. The petitioner served a notice for demand of justice and when he did not get a reply he filed writ petition. According to the petitioner, although, in his order of appointment issued on 23. 6. 1984 he has been shown to be a fresh appointee, intact it was a case of promotion and, therefore, it was absolutely essential for the respondents Board to have given the benefit of fixation of pay by treating him to be a promotee. The petitioner's further plea is that when benefit of past service as Helper has been extended to him in the matter of P. F. , service weightage, increments etc. there can be no justification for extending the benefit of pay by treating him to be a promotee. At any rate, the petitioner ought to have been given the benefit of pay fixation in such a matter which could not have resulted in reduction of his emoluments and in any case, he ought to have been given an opportunity of exercising his option to retain the pay of the lower post. In their counter affidavit filed the respondents took the stand that the petitioner shall be fixed in pay scale of L. D. C. after his appointment against direct recruitment as a fresh recruitee under R. S. E. B. Ministerial Staff Service Regulations, 1962 by order, dated 23. 06. 1984 and after the aforesaid Award dated 20. 05. 1985. No representation was made by the petitioner after fixation in terms of the Award till the date of filing this petition in this court and that once the petitioner accepted the fixation made in accordance with the rules axisting at the relevant point of time he cannot be permitted to challenge the same now way-back in the year 1992, i. e. , when the petition was filed in this court. The petition suffered from undue latches disentitled the petitioner for the relief claimed as no explanation has been furnished for the delay. Alternatively the learned counsel for the respondents argued that if the petitioners in the aforesaid writ petitions have any grievance in terms of the aforesaid Award, dated 20. 05. 1985, only remedy which is available to the petitioners is to approach the Industrial Forum under the Act of 1947 as the validity of the Award cannot be adjudicated before this court under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India. It was further contended by the learned counsel for the respondents that the petitioners were only appointed in the cadre of class IV and were as direct recruitee on the basis of his having passed the competitive examination held under the Rajasthan Electricity Board Ministerial Staff Regulation, 1962. Petitioner's pay was fixed by order, dated 7. 08. 1985 and he cannot be allowed to question pay fixation after a period of 7 years. Further case of the respondent is that as LDC the petitioner was treated as a fresh recruitee. The post held by him as class IV servant has nothing to do with the new cadre of LDC. His service conditions as LDC are regulated by the provisions of Regulations of 1962. Respondents have further stated that there are two pay scales in the cadre of Helper. These pay scales were 240-378 and 260-464. The revised pay scales were 400-640 and 430-740. The revision was affected from 1. 04. 1980. Pay scale of the post of LDC was Rs. 370-570, which was revised to Rs. 530-950. By giving interim relief further fitment was made w. e. f. 1. 04. 1983. Petitioner was not an existing employee in the cadre of LDCs. as on 1. 04. 1980 or 1st April 1983 as on those days, he was a class IV servant and his pay was fixed in the grade of Rs. 400-640 w. e. f. 1. 04. 1980. His further fitment was done as on 1. 04. 1983 as a Class IV Servant and he was fixed with the basic pay of Rs. 480/ -. Respondents have stated that since the petitioner was not holding the post of LDC as on 1. 04. 1983 he had not right to claim fixation as LDC as on 1. 04. 1983. Only those LDCs. who were holding that post as on 1. 04. 1983, were fixed in the scale of LDC as on 1. 04. 1983. Their pay was fixed with the basic of Rs. 595/ -. Petitioner was appointed as LDC on promotion vide order, dated 23. 06. 1984 after due selection as departmental candidate and therefore, he cannot claim fixation of his pay in the pay scale of LDC as on 1. 04. 1980 or 1. 04. 1983. During the course of hearing Shri P. K. Sharma, learned counsel for the petitioners placed reliance on orders dated 31. 10. 1990, passed in S. B. Civil Writ Petition No. 4019/88, Shiv Dayal Sharma vs. R. S. E. B. (decided by Hon'ble K. C. Agrawal CJ) as also the orders dated 27. 11. 1991 and 6. 12. 1991, passed in S. B. Civil Writ Petition No. 3552/88, Ramkaran vs. R. S. E. B. and others and S. B. Civil Writ Petition No. 3903/88, Mohanlal vs. R. S. E. B. respectively, decided by Hon'ble S. N. Bhargava J. as he then was and argued that the cases of the petitioners are similar to the four writ petitions decided by this court. He argued that since this writ petition as well as the connected writ petitions are similar to the aforesaid writ petitions already decided by this court, the order passed in the above writ petitions should equally apply to this writ petition as well. In support of his contention learned counsel for the petitioners placed reliance on the Regulation 24 of the Ministerial Staff Regulations, 1962 which deals with the fixation of pay scales of class IV employeess of the respondents. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners was that since the petitioners were drawing pay in the pay scale Rs. 565/-in the cadre of Helpers (Class IV cadre) they were entitled to be fixed in the pay scale of LDC at Rs. 580/ -. There could have been no occasion for fixing their pay at Rs. 530/- on the date of their promotion as LDC. Shri Ajay Rastogi, learned counsel for the respondents, on the other hand, placed reliance on order, dated 29. 1. 1991 passed in S. B. Civil Writ Petition Nos. 2174/88, 2175/88 and 3177/88. He therefore, submitted that the case of the petitioners is fully covered by the decision of the aforesaid case.
(3.) ON the other hand it was contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that the aforesaid order is not applicable to them as their appointments were made earlier in point of time, then the petitioners in the said cases. In writ petition No. 6916/92 the petitioner initially appointed as a Helper was promoted as LDC in the quota of 15% of class IV employees which was reserved for their promotions to LDCs. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners was that notwithstanding the past service rendered by the petitioner as Peon till he was promoted to the post of LDC. w. e. f. 26. 03. 1984, the benefit of past service was not given to him and he was treated as a fresh appointee alongwith other candidates who were directly appointed as LDCs. This discrimination has resulted in great disadvantage to the petitioner as his past service was not considered for the purpose of selection as LDC. In reply to the aforesaid contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner Shri Rastogi learned counsel for the respondents placed reliance on Regulation No. 6 of the Regulations concerning the appointment of Ministerial Staff Regulations, 1962. Regulation 6 (1) provides that the appointment to the posts of LDCs. , Asstt. Store-keepers and Stenos Gr. III falling vacant in a year shall be made by direct recruitment in accordance with the procedure detailed in Regulation 16. Regulation 6 (2) of the Regulations, 1962 provides as under :- "the appointment to posts, other than those mentioned in sub- clause (1) and to those posts of Upper Division Clerks, Store- keepers, Accountants and Internal Auditors which are filled in by direct recruitment shall be made by promotion from lower grade as indicated in Regulation 17: Provided that in case the persons in the Lower grades are not considered suitable for promotion to higher grades, the appointment may be made by direct recruitment with the approval of the next higher authority. " There was an amendment to the aforesaid Regulations substituted by Order No. RSEB/f & R/f. 6 (9), dated 4. 8. 90 for the following : "15% posts of Lower Division Clerks including Record Keepers, Asstt. Store-keeprs and Bradma Operators shall be filled by promotion from amongst class IVth employees of the Board who has served in the Board for atleast 3 years as a class IV employee and have passed atleast Secondary Examination of the Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan or any other examination recognised equivalent to it by the Board. The post shall be filled by the Appointing Authorities from amongst class IV employees working in the offices under their administrative control, in the following ratio and proportion. (i) 7 l/2% posts shall be filled in strictly in the order of Seniority. (ii) 7 1/2% posts shall be filled in exclusively from amongst the class IV employees who have acquired the requisite Qualification after entering into the Board Service. (This was substituted vide D. 18 dated 1. 3. 1978 for: 5% posts of Lower Division Clerks including Record-keepers, Asstt. Sotre-keepers and Bradma Operators will be filled by promotion in the order of seniority from amongst class IV employees of the Board "and the class IV employees of the Erstwhile E & M Department whose services have been placed at the disposal of the Board" (Inserted vide notification No. A & F/msr/d-209 dated 10/12-4-1973) who have served in the Board for atleast three years as class IV employees and have passed atleast Secondary Examination of the Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan or any other examination recognised equivalent to it by the Board. The posts will be filled by the Board. The posts will be filled by the appointing authorities from amongst class IV employees working in the office under their administrative control. as class IV employee and have passed atleast Secondary Examination of the Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan or any other examination recognised equivalent to it by the Board. The posts will be filled by the appointing authorities from amongst class IV employees working in the office under their administrative control. " Placing reliance on the aforesaid it was contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that the petitioner in writ petition No. 6916/92 was not given the benefit of past services rendered by him as Helper prior to his promotion as LDC in violation of the aforesaid rule. Reference was also made to the Arbitration Award, dated 20. 05. 1985 on the reference of Industrial Dispute to the Arbitrators between R. S. E. B. and its workmen given by the Arbitrators published by the State Government vide Notification, dated 10. 06. 1985. The operative part of the Award which is applicable to this case is reproduced below : "while implementing the Award, all concerned are requested to keep the following instructions in view :- (i) The Annexure-II (A&b) appended to the Award shall be applicable to the "existing Board's workmen" which means the Board's workman who is in Board's pay scales during 1. 04. 1980 to 31. 03. 1983 and drawing pay as per RSEB Employees (Emoluments) Regulations, 1978, (ii) The Board's workman who was appointed on or after 1. 04. 1983 in pay scales under the RSEB Employees (Emoluments) Regulations, 1978 shall be fixed at minimum of the revised pay scale with reference to his date of appointment. " ;