JUDGMENT

A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, J.

The applicants before the Kerala Administrative Tribunal, Thiruvananthapuram in O.A.(EKM)Nos.1717/2016, 1853/2016, 342/2017, 239/2020 and 407/2020 are the petitioners before us, aggrieved by the common order dated 21.4.2021 of the Tribunal in the said O.A's. The petitioners were all Upper Division Clerks [UD Clerks]/Head Clerks working at various State Goods and Service Tax Offices, and they were aggrieved by the appointments contemplated to the post of Assistant State Tax Officer [ASTO] in the quota earmarked for by-transfer appointments from among qualified Stenographers and UD Typists.

2. As per the Special Rules in force, appointments to the post of ASTO were to be effected by direct recruitment and by transfer from among (i) UD Clerks and Head Clerks, (ii) Stenographers/Confidential Assistants and (iii) UD Typists in the as a method of recruitment for the post, was done away with during the year 1992 with retrospective effect from 1.1.1988, and that, at present, the recruitment to the post is only through by-transfer route from among the three streams mentioned above. While there is some ambiguity with regard to whether or not the direct rec