V. Ramasubramanian, J.

All these 5 writ petitions primarily challenge a common order passed by the Andhra Pradesh Administrative Tribunal, in a batch of 3 original applications and connected miscellaneous applications filed by the Deputy Executive Engineers (DEEs) working in the Irrigation and Command Area Development Department. The writ petitions also challenge 4 consequential orders passed by the official respondents on 12-11-2015, 13-11-2015, 2-12-2015 and 15-12-2015 cancelling the in-charge arrangements in superior posts and revising the seniority lists.

2. We have heard M/s. M. Surender Rao, K.G Krishna Murthy, D. Prakash Reddy and D.V. Seetharam Murthy, learned Senior Counsel as well as Mr. M. Ratna Reddy, learned counsel appearing for the writ petitioners, the learned Government Pleader for Services (Andhra Pradesh) and Mr. P. Balakrishna Murthy, learned counsel appearing for the private respondents.

3. BRIEF FACTS:

(i) A group of 11 DEEs working in the Irrigation and Command Area Development Department, who are the contesting respondents in these writ petitions, filed 3 applications in O.A Nos. 1463, 2032 and 2608 of 2014 on the file of the Andhra Pradesh Administrative Tribunal.

(ii) The reliefs sought in those original applications were:

(a) to set aside the Seniority List of DEEs dated 22-7-2013,

(b) to set aside the Final Seniority List of Assistant Executive Engineers (AEEs) dated 18-10-2012 relating to Batch-I and of the same date relating to Batch-II; and

(c) to set aside the 4 Final Zonal Seniority Lists of DEEs dated 22-01-2013 relating to Zones-II and III.

4. PLEADINGS BEFORE THE TRIBUNAL:

(i) The pleadings made before the Administrative Tribunal by the applicants in O.A. No. 2032 of 2014 were that the first 8 out of them belonged to Zone-II and the next 3 belonged to Zone-III; that after two agitations, one in 1969 and another in 1972, for the bifurcation of the State, a solution was sought to be arrived at, with the issue of Andhra Pradesh Public Employment (Organisation of Local Cadres and Regulation of Direct Recruitment) Order, 1975, which came to be known as the Presidential Order; that the said Presidential Order was issued in exercise of the powers conferred under Article 371-D of the Constitution of India; that pursuant thereto, different parts of the erstwhile combined State were divided into 6 Zones; that after the promulgation of the Presidential Order, direct recruitment to the post of Assistant Executive Engineer was resorted to Zone-wise, with a limited opportunity even to the non-locals to participate in the process of selection; that all the posts included in the State and Subordinate Services were classified into District Cadres, Zonal Cadres and State-vide Posts; that under the Andhra Pradesh Engineering Services Rules and Andhra Pradesh Engineering Subordinate Services Rules, the posts of AEEs and DEEs were classified as Zonal Cadre Posts, as a consequence of which direct recruitment to these posts had to be done by the Public Service Commission only Zone-wise, that the first 8 among the applicants before the Tribunal were selected in the year 1985 as AEEs in Zone-II and the next 3 candidates among them were selected to the same posts in Zone-III, through the Public Service Commission; that whenever a person is selected for appointment through the Public Service Commission, his seniority is determined by the rank assigned to him by the Public Service Commission, as seen from the proviso to Rule 3(b) of the General Rules; that under paragraph 3 of the Presidential Order, the State Government is obliged to organise local cadres for classes of posts in the Civil Services of the State and to civil posts under the State; that under paragraph 5(i) of the Presidential Order, each part of the State for which a local cadre has been organised, shall be a separate unit for the purpose of recruitm