Judgment :-

Tarun Chaterjee, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. These two appeals are directed against an interim order dated 4th of December, 2007 passed in Writ Petition No. 1496(S/B) of 2007 by a Division Bench of the High Court of Allahabad, Lucknow Bench, Lucknow whereby the High Court directed the aforesaid writ petition to be tagged with Writ Petition No. 1389 (SB) of 2007 pending in the High Court, following the interim order passed in the aforesaid Writ Petition No. 1389 (SB) of 2007 directing that the seniority of the respondents as existing prior to the enforcement of the U.P. Government Servants Seniority (3rd Amendment) Rules, 2007 shall not be disturbed in pursuance of the Rules by way of the aforesaid impugned order.

3. The relevant facts leading to the filing of these appeals may be summarized as under: -

In the year 1973, the Government Orders providing reservation in the matter of promotion for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes were issued. Subsequently, the U.P. Jal Nigam adopted the U.P. Government Servants Seniority Rules 1991. The aforesaid rules were notified by the State Government vide Notification dated 20th of March, 1991 which consisted of provisions of the aforesaid Rules of 1991. The respondent no. 2, namely, U.P. Jal Nigam is a Statutory Corporation created under the U.P. Water Supply and Sewerage Act, 1975 and the service conditions of the employees of the Nigam are governed by the U.P. Jal Nigam (Public Health Branch) Service Regulations, 1978. The aforesaid regulations were made in exercise of power conferred on the U.P. Jal Nigam under Sections 97(2) and 98(1) of the U.P. Water Supply and Sewerage Act, 1975 with the prior approval of the State Government.

4. Subsequently, in the year 1994, the Uttar Pradesh Public Services (Reservation for Schedule Caste, Schedule Tribes and other Backward Classes) Act, 1994 was promulgated and Section 3 (7) of the said Act of 1994 says that if on the date of the commencement of this Act, reservation was in force under Government orders for appointment to posts to be filled up by promotion, such Government orders shall continue to be applicable till they are modified or revoked. Further, on 10th of October, 1994 the percentage of reservation in the matter of Schedule Castes was enhanced from 18% to 21% by means of Government order referring to section 3(7) of the aforesaid Act of 1994.

5. Article 16(4-A) was introduced by an amendment of the Constitution on 17th of June, 1995, which reads as under :-

"Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for reservation in the matters of promotion, with consequential seniority, to any class or class of posts in the services under the State in favour of the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes which in the opinion of the State are not adequately represented in the services under the State"

6. Article 16(4-A) of the Constitution, which was inserted in the Constitution on 17th of June, 1995, as noted herein earlier, was incorporated by the Constitution (77th Amendment) Act, 1995, thereby introducing an enabling provision for providing reservation in the matter of promotion.

7. However, this Court in its Judgment dated 16th of November, 1992, in the case of Indira Sawhney vs. Union of India [AIR 1993 SC 447], observed that reservation of appointments or posts under Article 16 of the Constitution is confined to the initial appointment and cannot extend to reservation in the matter of promotion.

8. Further in the year 2002, the U.P. Government Servants Seniority (1st Amendment) Rules, 2002, were issued by which Rule 8 (A) was inserted in the Seniority Rules, 1991 providing consequential Seniority to the scheduled Castes and scheduled tribes from the date of their promotion and in the meantime the validity of Article 16(4-A) of the Constitution as also the Rules and Enactments of various states granting consequential seniority to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in the matter of promoti