Judgment

Raveendran, J.—The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation, first appellant, (for short ‘the Corporation’), issued a Circular dated 1.9.1988 containing the guidelines for absorption of persons employed on casual basis/consolidated pay/piecemeal rate/work charged establishment, whose services had been ordered to be dispensed with, under an earlier Circular dated 2.7.1987. The said guidelines provided, inter alia, that such absorption shall be only against sanctioned vacancies, and that the benefit was to be extended only to those who had been engaged for more than one year. The Circular made it clear that benefit thereof will not extend to persons engaged by its contractors at Bus Stations and certain other categories of persons detailed therein.

2. The respondents herein filed W.P. No. 14353/1991 claiming to be scavengers employed by the Corporation, seeking a direction for regularisation. That petition was disposed of by order 5.11.1991 with a direction to consider their cases in terms of the Circular dated 1.9.1988 and pass appropriate orders. The High Court did not examine the claim on merits.

3. To give effect to the said order, the Divisional Manager of the Adila