Judgment

DUTT, J.:- These two appeals by special leave involve the interpretation of the Uttar Pradesh Non-Technical (Class-II) Services (Reservation of Vacancies for Demobilised Officers) Rules, 1973, hereinafter referred to as the 1973 Rules, and the Uttar Pradesh Non-Technical (Class-II/Group B) Services (Appointment of Demobilised Officers) Rules, 1980, hereinafter referred to as the 1980 Rules, relating to the seniority of the appellants vis-a-vis the private respondents.

2. The appellants have all been appointed in the Provincial Civil Service of the State of Uttar Pradesh as direct recruits on the basis of competitive examinations held by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission. The appointments of the appellants were made under the U. P. Civil Service (Executive Branch) Rules, 1941 framed under Section 241(1)(b) of the Government of India Act, 1935, hereinafter referred to as the Service Rules.

3. The respondents were recruited under the 1973 Rules and/or the 1980 Rules. The respondents were either Emergency Commissioned Officers or the Short Service Commissioned Officers of the armed forces of the Union of India and were commissioned on or before November 1, 1962 during the Indo-Chinese war. They were demobilised from armed forces in or about 1968. These respondents, therefore, rendered services to the country during the operation of the emergency when the nations security was in peril due to external aggression. In order to rehabilitate such persons and to ensure them that in civil life, after the cessation of emergency, they were not to suffer for rendering services to the nation and with a view to putting the respondents at par with other persons, the 1973 Rules were framed by the Governor of U. P. in exercise of his powers under the proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution of India.

4. Rule 1(3) of the 1973 Rules provide that they shall remain in force for a period of five years from the date of their commencement. Rule 3, inter alia, provides for the reservation of ten per cent of the permanent vacancies in all Non-Technical (Class-II) Services to be filled substantively by direct recruitment through competitive examination in any year. Rule 6 relating to seniority and pay, which is important for the purpose of these appeals is extracted below:-

"R. 6. Seniority and pay

(1) Seniority and pay of candidates appointed against the vacancies reserved under sub-rule (1) of Rule 3, shall be determined on the assumption that they entered the service concerned at their second opportunity, of competing for recruitment, and they shall be assigned the same year of allotment as successful candidates of the relevant competitive examination :

Provided that any such candidate who had two opportunities before the date of his joining the training prior to his commission whether he actually availed any such opportunity or not, shall be assigned the same year of allotment as successful candidates of the first competitive examination held after the said date.

Explanation - The year of a candidates second opportunity will be determined by the date of his birth in relation to the prescribed minimum age for competing for recruitment to the service.

(2) Seniority inter se of candidates who are appointed against vacancies reserved under sub-rule (1) of Rule 3 and allotted to a particular year shall be determined according to the merit list prepared by the Ayog on the basis of the results of their performance at the examination.

(3) All candidates appointed against vacancies reserved under sub-rule (1) of Rule 3 and allotted to any particular year shall rank below the candidates who were successful at the competitive examination held for recruitment to the service in that year.

(4) The pay of candidates appointed against vacancies referred to in sub-rule (3) of Rule 3 shall also be determined in the same manner as indicated in sub-rule (1) of this rule but their seniority shall be determined in accordance with the foregoing sub-rules only if an