VISWANATHA IYER, J.:- All these original petitions under Art.226 of the Constitution, involve a common question as to the right of a religious minority to appoint Headmasters of its choice, irrespective of seniority, in educational institutions established and administered by it. The minority concerned in these cases is Christian community. The minority educational agencies in question, who have established and are

administering various educational institutions in the State, have been required by the authorities functioning under the Kerala Education Act, 1958 (Act 6 of 1959) and the Rules framed thereunder, to appoint Headmasters in these institutions in accordance with seniority, as enjoined by R.44 of Chapter XIV-A of the Kerala Education Rules (the Rules, for short). The contention of the minority educational agencies who have filed these original petitions (except O.P. No. 4795 of 1989) (in some cases, along with their appointee Headmasters) is that R.44 makes an inroad into the rights of the minorities to administer educational institutions of their choice by insisting that appointments of Headmasters should "ordinarily" be according to seniority. O.P. No. 4795 of 198