JUDGMENT Dated this the 20^th day of February, 2026 The petitioners were appointed by the

6^th respondent-Manager as per Exts.P1 to P5 appointment orders. The appointments were made against vacancies that arose pursuant to the sanction of additional batches as per Ext.P6 order.

2. Subsequently, the Government sanctioned posts as per Ext.P7. However, the sanction was granted only with effect from 15.07.2013 instead of 03.08.2011, the date on which additional batches were sanctioned as per Ext.P6. It is submitted that additional batches could not have functioned without Teachers. Therefore, sanctioning the posts from a later date, without assigning any cogent reason, is unjust and arbitrary.

3. Later, the appointment of the 1^st petitioner was approved with effect from 21.10.2013 and 2^nd petitioner was approved with effect from 22.10.2013 and that of the others from 23.10.2013. In between the actual dates of appointment as per Exts.P1 to P5 and the dates of approval on 21.10.2013, 22.10.2013 and 23.10.2013, the Government introduced Contributory Pension Scheme as per NPS, with effect from 01.04.2013. On the ground that the petitioners’ appointments were approved after 01.04.2013, they wer