Ramesh Ranganathan, J.

This batch of Writ Petitions is filed by the Union of India represented by the Secretary, Ministry of Railways, and the unofficial respondents in the O.As, aggrieved by the orders passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Hyderabad Bench, (hereinafter referred to as “Tribunal”), in allowing the O.As and in setting aside the action of the Railways in including candidates, belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, in the select panel for different posts, and in directing the Railways to finalise promotion/selection only after collecting necessary data in compliance with the pre-conditions laid down in the Constitution Bench judgment of the Supreme Court in M. Nagaraj v. Union of India (2006 (8) SCC 212).

The respondents herein, i.e., applicants in the O.As, are all employees of the Railways working in different cadres. They invoked the jurisdiction of the Tribunal aggrieved by the action of the Railways in promoting members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, who were juniors to them in service, on the basis of reservation. They contended before the Tribunal that such reservation was in violation of the law declare