Judgment

GOSWAMI, J.: - The petitioners in Writ Petition No. 489 of 1972 are confirmed Assistant Engineers in the Central Engineering Service (Class II). They were promoted to officiate as Executive Engineers in Class I between December 27, 1956 and September 8, 1959, by a properly constituted Departmental Promotion Committee and have been working as Executive Engineers in the Central Public Works Department of the Ministry of Works and Housing of the Government of India. Except one petitioner (namely, K. G. Chopra) all the petitioners were promoted to the grade of Executive Engineer prior to their confirmation as Assistant Engineers. The respondents 4 to 66 were initially recruited as Assistant Executive Engineers in Class 1 and were promoted to the grade of Executive Engineer between the period March 11, 1957 and February 23, 1966.

2. The appellants in Civil Appeals Nos. 1745 of 1974 and 1746 and 1747 of 1974, who were recruited directly to Class II as a result of competitive examination in which they had failed to secure requisite marks for being selected for Class 1 are also confirmed Assistant Engineers in Grade II and have been officiating as Executive Engineers in Grade I. They have obtained special leave against the Full Bench judgment of the Delhi High Court in their writ petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution decided by a common judgment of 20th May, 1971.* Since a common question of law is involved in all these matters, this judgment will govern all the above matters. We will, therefore, include the appellants also in describing them as petitioners in this judgment.

* reported in 1971 Lab I C 1553 (Delhi) (FB).

3. The Service with which we are concerned is the Central Engineering Service, Class 1. According to the Central Engineering Service. Class I, Recruitment Rules (briefly the Rules) framed in the year 1954 by S. R. O. 1841 dated May 21, 1954, which are admittedly similar to those of 1949 Recruitment Rules, officers in the grade of Assistant Executive Engineer (Class I) and certain Assistant Engineers (Class II, are eligible for promotion to the grade of Executive Engineer (Class I). The vacancies in the grade of Executive Engineer can only be filled by promotion from the aforesaid two grades in the ratio of 75 and 25 . The aforesaid quota was retrospectively altered with effect from September 7, 1955, to 66-2/3 and 33-1/3 .

4. Part I of the Rules contains the definitions By Rule 2 (b) thereof, "The Commission" means the Union Public Service Commission Rule 2 (c) defines "The Service" as the Central Engineering Service, Class I. The Service includes various grades of posts.

5. Rules 3, 4 and 5 relevant for our purpose are as under:

"3. Recruitment to the Service shall be made by any of the following methods:

(a) By competitive examination in India in accordance with Part III of these rules.

(b) By promotion in accordance with Part IV of these Rules.

(c) By transfer in accordance with Part V of these Rules.

4. (1) All appointments to the Service or to posts borne upon the cadre of the Service shall be made by Government.

(2) Subject to the provisions of Rule 3 Government shall determine the method or methods of requirement (sic) (recruitment?) to be employed for the purpose of filling any particular vacancies in the Service or such vacancies therein as may be required to be filled during any particular period and the number of candidates to be recruited by each method:

Provided that all recruitments by competitive examination (vice part III of the rules) shall be to the grade of Assistant Executive Engineer, Class I only.

Seventy-five per cent of the vacancies in the grade of Executive Engineer, Class I, shall be filled by promotion of Assistant Executive Engineers, Class I, the rest of the vacancies being filled by promotion and/or by transfer in accordance with Paris IV and V of the Rules respectively.

5. Appointments to the Service made otherwise than by promotion will be subject to orders issued from time to tim