( 1 ) THE principal reason to support the claims of the petitioners in this group of writ petitions is based on the pronouncement of a Division Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in Officers' Association, Bhilai Steel Plant v. Union of India and Ors. (1983) 139 ITR 937 (MP), which was followed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in Indian Bank Officers' Association and Ors. v. Indian Bank and Ors. , and then by a Division Bench of this Court, to which I was a party, in ITO and. Ors. v. All India Vijaya Bank Officers' Association and Ors. , and lastly by the Division Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in Steel Executives' Association v. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd.

( 2 ) DR. Pal, who argued the case of one of the petitioners, submitted that similar questions are now being considered by the Supreme Court in a proceeding now pending before it, which has arisen out of a judgment delivered by a Division Bench of Jharkhand High Court and where his clients have filed an application for transfer of the case of his clients, which is also now been considered by me along with other matters. Despite knowledge of the fact that the Supreme Court is considering similar