Judgment

SHELAT, J.:- On October 1, 1957 when the then State of Punjab brought about provincialisation of all Schools till then run by the Local Bodies there were 231 High Schools and 762 Middle Schools conducted by the said Local Bodies. There were at that time 321 headmasters/headmistresses getting a scale of pay of Rupees 250-Rupees 350, 294 masters/.mistresses getting a scale of pay of Rupees 250-Rupees 300 and 1,792 masters/mistresses getting a lower scale of Rupee 100-Rupees 250. On October 1, 1957, all the Schools together with their existing staff were taken over by the State Government. As in the case of the primary junior teachers, it was provided that all these masters/mistresses from the provincialised Schools would be given the same scale of pay and allowances as were given to their counterparts serving in the Government Schools.

2. According to the petitioners the minimum qualifications required for the appointment of masters were the same for both the State schools and those conducted by the Local Bodies. That fact, coupled with the fact that they were to be given the same scale of pay, and allowances, meant that there was no difference between the provincialised maste