Judgment

RANGANATH MISRA, J.:- These 12 applications under Art. 32 of the Constitution are by Assistants covered by the Central Secretariat Service Rules, 1962 (Rules for short), and challenge is to the select list for the grade of Section Officers for the years 1978, 1979 and 1980, and the common seniority list dt. April 26, 1979, as also the provisional supplementary list of Assistants dated August 21, 1980. They have further prayed that the select list and seniority list be re-published on the basis of length of continuous service in the grade of Assistants and promotion to the grade of Section Officers be granted from the dates when Assistants junior to them were promoted as Section Officers.

2. The Rules framed under the proviso to Art. 309 of the Constitution came into force from October 1, 1962. Under the Rules, the Central Secretariat Service was constituted and as per rule 3 there are four grades in the Service classified as follows :

(i) Selection Grade (Deputy Secretary to the Government of India or equivalent);

(ii) Grade I (Under Secretary to the Government of India or equivalent);

(iii) Section Officers;

(iv) Assistants.

The first two grades are classified as Central Civil S