JUDGMENT

VENKATACHALIAH, J.:— These four Civil Appeals by Special Leave and the Special Leave Petition arise out of and are directed against the common judgment dated 2-9-1987, of the High Court of Delhi in C.W.P. No. 2132 and C.W.P. No. 2082 of 1984 (reported in 1988 Lab IC 434) in which the principal controversy was whether the Rules prescribing different conditions of eligibility for Diploma Holders and Graduates for promotion from the cadre of Junior-Engineers to that of Assistant-Engineers and from the cadre of Assistant-Engineers to that of Executive-Engineers in the Public Works Department of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) is violative of Arts. 14 and 16 of the Constitution, and would, therefore, require to be declared void.

The High Court, in the writ petitions filed by the Diploma-Holders, has held that such differential treatment of Diploma-Holders and Graduates by the prescription of different standards of service-experience for purposes of eligibility for promotion to the higher cadres is unconstitutional.

2. The D.D.A. which is the appellant in Civil Appeals No. 898 of 1988 and No. 899 of 1988 assails the correctness of the view taken by the High Court. Civil Appe