JUDGMENT

MAJMUDAR, J.:—Leave to appeal granted in Special Leave Petition(Civil) Nos.6395 and 13446 ot 1994.

2. In all these appeals a common question arises for our consideration, namely, whether the State Government of Andhra Pradesh was justified in promulgating the rules under Article 309 of the Constitution of India under which it was provided that candidates seeking appointment to the posts in the service specified in the concerned rules who had obtained basic educational qualifications prescribed for direct recruitment governing such posts through the Telugu medium shall be given weightage in the matter of selection to such posts by awarding them five percent of the total aggregate maximum marks in the relevant competitive examination held by the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission for recruitment to such posts.

3. The State Government issued GOM No. 603 dated 18-11-1981 under which one such rule was framed. Even earlier GOM No.504, GAD was issued on 26-6-1976 to the same effect, of course for limited number of posts. While the G. O.dated 18-11-1981 was more comprehensive in nature and covered a wider range of posts.

4. The said G.O. No.504 was brought in challenge before the Andhra Pradesh High Court by non-Telugu medium candidates by way of Writ Petition No.2041 of 1981. That writ petition was allowed by a learned single Judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, Jeevan Reddy, J., as he then was, who by his order dated 7-6-1981 quashed and set aside the said G.O.Ms. No.504 on the ground that it was discriminatory and violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India. That resulted in two writ appeals under clause 15 of the letters patent - one by the State of Andhra Pradesh and another by the Telugu medium candidates. Both these appeals were heard together by a Division Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court consisting of Alladi Kuppuswami, CJ, and Seetharam Reddy, J who by their Judgment and order dated 15-9-1981 allowed the writ appeals and upheld the impugned G.O. meaning thereby they took the view that such five percent weightage in total marks given to the Telugu medium candidates was not violative of the constitutional provisions of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. Hence the writ petition filed by the Non-Telugu medium candidates was dismissed. It is that order of the Division Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court that has resulted in civil appeal by special leave being Civil Appeal No.2914 of 1981-

5. As stated earlier,subsequently the State of Andhra Pradesh by issuing a more comprehensive G.O. No.603 dated 18-11-1981 extended five per cent weightage to all Telugu medium students who competed for posts of which recruitment was being done by the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission to any service in the State of Andhra Pradesh. The statutory rules framed as per the said G.O. were challenged by non-Telugu medium candidates before the Andhra Pradesh Administrative Tribunal at Hyderabad. The Tribunal by its order dated 18-1-1994 allowed the said challenge in O.A.No.2142 of 1993 and held that the said G.O. was violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. That decision of the Tribunal which took a view contrary to the earlier decision of the Division Bench of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh, noted hereinabove, has resulted in appeals by special leave. Special Leave Petition (C) No.6395 of 1994 was moved by Telugu medium candidates and the State of Andhra Pradesh also challenged the very same order by filing the Special Leave Petition(C) No.13446 of 1994. As the questions involved in all these proceedings are common, all these appeals were heard together and after hearing the learned counsel for the respective parties, we are disposing of these appeals by this common judgment.

6. A few introductory facts leading to the promulgation of the aforesaid impugned rules pursuant to the impugned G.Os, deserve to be noted at the outset. The Andhra Pradesh Official Language Act (9 of 1966) by Secti