JUDGMENT :

G.K. MITTER, J.

1. This appeal by certificate granted by the High Court of Mysore arises out of a Writ Petition No. 216 of 1967 filed in that Court by one Y. Krishna Reddy against the Chief Secretary to the Government of Mysore and 58 other persons praying for the issue of a writ of mandamus or order of a like nature directing the first respondent i.e. the said Secretary, to consider the case of the petitioner for promotion with effect from December 17, 1966 to the post of Senior Assistant on which date respondents 2 to 59 who were junior to the petitioner were promoted either in addition to or in supersession of the promotion of respondents 2 to 59 with a further direction to give all consequential benefits.

2. The petition mentioned above and a number of other petitions filed by Assistant in the Mysore Government Secretariat with the common complaint that they had not been promoted as Senior Assistants when a number of Assistants Junior to them and impleaded as respondents were so promoted by the official memorandum dated December 17, 1966 were disposed of by a common judgment of the High Court. The ground on which these petitions were said not to have been considered for promotion was that they had not passed the departmental examinations prescribed by the Mysore Secretariat Services (Recruitment Amendment) Rules, 1966 made by the Governor under the proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution and published by a notification dated November 26, 1966. The common prayer of the petitioners was that the State Government should be directed to consider their cases for promotion as from the date on which the Assistant Junior to them were promoted.

3. It is necessary to note the background of the Mysore Secretariat Services (Recruitment Amendment) Rules, 1966, hereinafter referred to as the Amendment Rules, when the new State of Mysore emerged on 1st November, 1956 civil servants from different States were allotted to the new State under the provisions of the State Reorganisation Act, 1956, hereinafter referred to as the Reorganisation Act part X of the Act containing Sections 114 to 118 contains provisions as to the services. Section 115 enacts provisions relating to services other than All India Services Sub-section Section (5) of this Section provides that the Central Government may by order establish one or more Advisory Committee for the purpose of assisting it in regard to various matters including the ensuring of fair and equitable treatment to all the persons affected by the provisions of the Section and the proper consideration of any representations made by such persons. Sub-section (7) provides :-

"Nothing in this Section shall be deemed to affect after the appointed day the operation of the provisions of Chapter I of Part XVI of the Constitution in relation to the determination of the conditions of services of persons serving in connection with the affairs of the Junior or any State :

Provided that the conditions of service applicable immediately before the appointed day to the case of any person referred to in sub-section (1) of sub-section (2) shall not be varied to his disadvantage except with the previous approval for the Central Government."

4. Section 117 enables the Central Government at any time before or after the appointed day to give such directions to any State Government as may appear to it to be necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the foregoing provisions of part X of the Act and the State Government has to comply with such directions.

5. The Central Government addressed a letter dated March 27, 1957 to the State Government affected by the reorganisation of States regarding protection of service conditions to be afforded to State service personnel and this was republished by the Mysore State Government on May 11, 1957. By that letter the Central Government decided that the conditions of service obtaining immediately before 1st November, 1956 relating to pay, special pay, leave rules, pension etc.