By the Court.—We have heard Shri P.S. Baghel, Senior Advocate assisted by Shri Gautam Baghel and Shri Rajiv Mishra for the petitioners. Shri S.G. Hasnain, Additional Advocate General assisted by Shri Pankaj Saxena, Standing Counsel appears for the State respondents. Shri H.N. Singh appears for U.P. Higher Education Service Commission. Shri B.D. Mandhyan, Senior Advocate assisted by Shri Satish Mandhyan; Shri Ashok Khare, Senior Advocate assisted by Shri V.K. Singh and Shri Shailendra have appeared for the newly impleaded private respondents.

2. All the petitioners are serving as honorary Lecturers in the aided Degree Colleges in the State of Uttar Pradesh affiliated to the respective Universities under the U.P. State Universities Act, 1973. They were appointed under a Scheme provided in the Government Order dated 7.4.1998, by the Committees of Management of the respective Colleges after advertisement and selection by the Selection Committees for one academic session at a time, until joining of the regularly selected candidates, whichever is earlier. Most of these teachers working on honorarium have obtained interim orders from this Court to continue till the joining of the regularly selected candidates. In Writ Petition No. 5210 of 2007, Anurag Tripathi and others v. State of UP and others, with which 167 other Writ Petitions were clubbed, it was held by final judgment dated 4.4.2008 that the petitioners will continue to work as honorarium teachers as per provisions of the Government Order dated 7.4.1998 till regularly selected candidates join. It was made categorically clear that these teachers are not entitled to absorption/regularisation. The Court also directed the Director of Higher Education to fill up all the vacancies on the post of Lecturers by regularly selected candidates.

3. In Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 884 of 2004 alongwith six Special Leave Petitions filed by the teachers serving on honorarium under the Government Order dated 7.4.1998 against the judgment of this Court in Writ Petition No. 44332 of 2003, Malvika Shekhar v. Director, Higher Education, U.P. and others, dated 29.9.2003, the Supreme Court, by its order dated 28.4.2008, issued directions to the High Court to take decision afresh, and until then status quo be maintained. The Writ Petition No. 44332 of 2003 was filed by Malvika Shekhar with a prayer to allow her candidature till regularly selected candidate joins. The writ petition is still pending.

4. By these writ petitions, the petitioners have prayed for quashing the Advertisement No. 41 [42]1, issued by the U.P. Higher Education Service Commission in the year 2008 inviting applications for selection and regular appointment of Lecturers in Government aided Degree Colleges in the State of U.P. The advertisement is confined to the selections on 337 reserved posts including 305 for Scheduled Castes and 32 for Scheduled Tribes in 34 subjects. In Writ Petition No. 10712 of 2010 on 17.3.2010 the Court passed following orders :

Learned standing counsel appears for respondent Nos. 1 and 2, Smt. Archana Singh appears for respondent Nos. 3 and 4.

All the respondents are granted four weeks time to file counter affidavit. Rejoinder affidavit within two weeks thereafter.

It is stated that the advertisement is in teeth of the judgment of Dr. Vishwajeet Singh and others v. State of U.P. and others, 2009(4) ADJ 373, alongwith other connected petitions decided on 20.4.2009. The judgment has been challenged by the State of U.P. in the Supreme Court. The Special Leave Petition is still pending.

As an interim measure we provide that the selections and appointments will be subject to the result of the writ petition.

5. The Commission proceeded with the selections subject-wise and has completed the selections for 21 subjects, for which the results have been declared and that the list has been sent to the Director, Higher Education for issuing placement orders. The majority of the persons selected have be