Point of Law: Section 16(6) of the Act of 1994 provides that every officer or employee who immediately before commencement of the Act of 1994 was in the service of the Municipality shall be deemed to be an officer or employee of the Corporation. As such, the same is not relatable to the writ petitioners.

JUDGMENT :

ARUP KUMAR GOSWAMI, J.

1. A batch of thirty writ petitions raising identical issues came to be dismissed by a learned single Judge by a common judgment and order dated 25.01.2021. Twelve appeals have been filed against the said common judgment and order dated 25.01.2021.

2. Following the said common judgment and order dated 25.01.2021, another batch of twenty writ petitions, involving the same issues, had been dismissed by a common judgment and order dated 05.02.2021. Four appeals have been filed against the said common judgment and order dated 05.02.2021.

3. W.A.Nos.80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 93, 95, 104, 105, 108, 129 and 135 of 2021 have arisen from the first batch of writ petitions in respect of W.P.Nos.20816, 21307, 20789, 20942, 21084, 21016, 20725, 20808, 21069, 21112, 23885 and 20755 of 2020, respectively.

4. W.A.Nos.130, 139, 142 and 143 of 2021 have arisen from the second batch of writ petitions in respect of W.P.Nos.19242, 20565, 20422 and 23918 of 2020, respectively.

5. We have heard Ms. Kavitha Gottipati, learned counsel for the appellants in W.A.Nos.80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 93, 95, 104, 105, 129, 139, 142 and 143 of 2021, Mr. V.R. Reddy Kovvuri, learned counsel for the appellants in W.A.No.130 of 2021, and Mr. Seshadri Goalla, learned counsel for the appellants in W.A.Nos.108 and 135 of 2021. We have also heard Mr. S. Sriram, learned Advocate General, and Mr. K. Bheema Rao, learned Government Pleader for Services-III, for the respondents.

6. For the purpose of hearing of the appeals, learned counsel for the parties have referred to the materials on record in W.A.No.81 of 2021, which arises out of W.P.No.21307 of 2020. Therefore, for the purpose of disposal of the appeals, we will rely upon the pleadings in W.P.No.21307 of 2020 and the documents placed in W.A.No.81 of 2021.

7. W.P.No.21307 of 2020 was filed by three petitioners. The case presented by them is that they have been working in schools located in and around Chittoor Municipal Corporation as Secondary Grade Teachers. It is not indicated for how long they have been individually working in the said schools, but a statement is made that the three writ petitioners had completed 2 to 8 years of service in the respective schools. The Government had issued Notification in G.O.Ms.No.258, Municipal Administration & Urban Development Department, dated 07.07.2012, constituting the Chittoor Municipality into larger urban area, namely, Chittoor Municipal Corporation, by merging 14 Gram Panchayats into the said Corporation. The schools in which the writ petitioners are serving are managed by Panchayat Raj & Rural Development Department. It is pleaded that the surrounding villages of Chittoor Municipal Corporation, wherein the schools in which the writ petitioners have been working are located, having been merged with the Corporation, in terms of Section 16 of the Andhra Pradesh Municipal Corporations Act, 1994 (for short, ‘the Act of 1994’), the writ petitioners shall be deemed to be employees of Chittoor Municipal Corporation. However, the Government issued G.O.Ms.No.53, School Education (Services-II) Department, dated 12.10.2020, and G.O.Ms.No.54, School Education (Services-II) Department, dated 12.10.2020, for rationalization of teachers and transfer of teachers working in Government/Zilla Praja Parishad (ZPP)/Mandal Praja Parishad (MPP) schools in Andhra Pradesh School Education Service and Andhra Pradesh School Education Subordinate Service. Thereafter, in pursuance of the above said G.Os., respondent No.4 – Commissioner and Director of School Education issued a tentative transfer schedule dated 02.11.2020 requesting the District authorities to follow the time schedule for completion of transfers. It is pleaded that without taking decision for merger of the schools into Chittoor Municipal Corporation, the respondents may shift them from their respective places of posting to places outside the Chittoor Municipal Corporation limits on the ground that they had already