KAN SINGH, J—The two writ petitions before me being of identical nature were called on for hearing together and it is convenient to dispose them of by one judgment. The petitioners, who are Superintendents of Police in the State of Rajasthan, question a Government order whereby their previously fixed seniority in the I. P. S. Cadre has been altered by the Government vis-a-vis the contesting respon-dents Servashri J. K. Balani and H. N. Kak, respondents Nos. 3 and 4 respectively. It will be convenient to state the facts with reference to the writ petition of Shri K. N. Gupta. I

2. Petitioner Shri K. N. Gupta belonged to the former covenanting stats of Jodhpur and he graduated in commerce from the Agra University in 1947 and post graduated in Commerce and graduated in Law from the Lucknow University in 1949. After the formation of Rajasthan he came to be appointed as Deputy Superintendent of Police. In January, 1951, Shri Gupta as also Shri Bajranglal, the writ petitioner in the other case, were sent for training as Deputy Superintendents of Police to Moradabad Police Training College and on the completion of their training they joined as Deputy Superintendents of Police Shri Gupta was appointed as a member of the Rajasthan Police Service in 1953 when such service was constituted by the State. Subsequently Shri Gupta came to be appointed in the Indian Police Service. He claims that in pursuance of Indian Police Service ( Appointment by Promotion} Regulations, 1955, a Committee was constituted by the Central Government in January, 1957, and it consisted of the Chairman, Union Public Service Commission, the Chief Secretary of the State Government, the Home Secretary of the State Government, the Inspector General of Police Rajasthan and the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Headquarters, and he was selected for inclusion of his name in the special selection list for being appointed to the Indian Police Service. The following officers, according to him, were selected in the order in which their names are shown:

(1) Shri J.P. Singha

(2) Shri P.C. Bhatia

(3) Shri Bhagirath Ram Bishnoi

(4) Shri Bajranglal

(5) Shri K.N. Gupta (petitioner)

(6) Shri Shishram Sharma.

Out of these officers according to the petitioner, Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 6 were already officiating as Superintendents of Police, but the petitioner was placed higher in the order of merit in comparison to Shri Shishram Sharma who was senior to him in the Rajasthan Police Service and was already officiating as Superintendent of Police at the time. The list was prepared in this order because Shri Gupta was considered to possess special merit in comparison to Shri Shishram Sharma and other senior officers in the R.P.S. Cadre who were not taken on the Select List. The petitioner proceeds to say that at the time of his selection there were many officers belonging to the Rajasthan Police Service who were officiating as Superintendents of Police, but they were not considered fit. He has pointed out the names of Servashri P. L. Banerjee, Kundanlal and Madanlal. The recommendations of the Selection Committee were placed before the Cabinet of Ministers and, according to Shri Gupta, the Cabinet decided that both Shri Gupta and Shri Bajrang Lal be appointed as officiating Superintendent of Police whenever any future vacancies occurred. It is claimed that as the petitioner was given a higher position in the Select List on account of his merit in comparison to those who were already officiating as Superintendents of Police., the idea was that whenever any post would fall vacant in future he was to be appointed on a permanent basis and was to be given preference over those who were kept lower in the list. The version of the petitioner further is that he was considered fit to hold the post of Superintendent by the then Inspector General of Police and the latter had recommended for appointing the petitioner as such on 18-2-57. Though the selection of the petitioner for inclusion of his name in the Selec

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