The Order of the Court was as follows :

This petition is by the four unfortunate petitioners who are all ladies. Out of them, the first petitioner is already dead and her legal representatives have already been brought on record.

The petitioners were working in the College run by the second respondent as Sweepers. It seems that they were working for quite some time. The first petitioner was working there from 1957 while the other petitioners were working from early 70s. The College came under the sweep of the Private Colleges Regulations Act which Act came in the year 1976. The said Act prescribed the conditions of service of the teaching as well as non-teaching staff. It is the admitted position that this College receive 100% grant. It was the policy of the Government, which has reflected from the Government orders, that a staff working in the private college for five years as on 1-1-1979 as a contingent staff should get a permanent status and, thereafter, the said staff could be brought on the regular time scale. The salaries are payable by the Government fully to such staff. All the four petitioners, who belong to the Scheduled Castes, therefore, ordinarily could have been brought on the regular service by becoming permanent, because all of them have practically completed five years of service on 1-1-1979, and even if they had not, later on they were bound to be so brought on the regular establishment because of their continuous service.

It seems that in spite of the several representations, they have neither been regularised nor been brought on the regular time scale of pay and are still working on the meager salaries. They have now approached this Court for a writ of mandamus to issue orders to regularise the services of the petitioners and then bring them on the regular time scale of pay prescribed by the Tamil Nadu Government with effect from 1-1-1979. They have also prayed for arrears of salary together with interest.It is pointed out by the learned senior counsel for the petitioner-Mr. Chandru that incessant efforts were being made in this direction. My attention was invited firstly to the fact that the Deputy Director of Collegiate Education had passed an order dated 14-8-1987 approving six posts of scavengers as per the prescribed norms which were fixed by G.O.Ms. No. 1699 Education dated 1-10-1977. My attention was then invited towards the fact that on 19-1-1988, the Regional Deputy Director directed the College to send the proposals like the petitioners who were employed on a continuous basis, and who were continuously serving for five years as on 1-1-1979. Two representations seem to have been made, one on 11-3-1991, and the other on 14-12-1992, wherein, the petitioners have brought along with necessary details like their date of birth, pay scale, and the date of appointment that they were entitled to be appointed permanently, and were also entitled to be brought on the regular time scale of pay.

Petitioners'-counsel then invites my attention towards the letters sent by the Principal of the College dated 12-1-1993 and 1-2-1993, whereby, the Principal of the College had acknowledged the fact that the petitioners were working in the College as sweepers. Though in the first letter it is claimed that they were part-time employees and that there was no justification for the appointment as full time basis as there was no sufficient work, then it is also pointed out further that the persons have understated their age and, therefore, the management had directed them to produce the valid proof of their age. Very curiously enough, however, it was written in this letter that it was the policy of the management not to employ women employees as full time employees, and the management was prepared to appoint male sweepers on full time basis in the place of women sweepers.Two facts emerged from these letters are, firstly, that the employees had at least stated their age, because otherwise the management could not come t