ORDER

This Writ Petition has been filed by the petitioners seeking a direction to the respondents herein to pass appropriate orders enabling fixation of inter-se Seniority list between the Direct Recruit Assistants and the petitioners (i.e., Promotee Assistants) by adopting a ratio between them in the category of Assistants for the purpose of empanelment and promotion to the next higher posts.

2. The case of the petitioners is that the petitioners herein are similarly placed employees working in the Panchayat Development Wing, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department in Namakkal District having been promoted as such from the post of Junior Assistants/Typists/Panchayat Secretary/Office Assistants, Record Clerk. They are commonly and collectively aggrieved by the seniority list of promotee Assistants and directly Recruited Assistants in terms of Rule 35(aa) of the General Rules for Tamil Nadu State and Subordinate Service, fixing a ratio for promotion to next higher post of Deputy BDO between the promotee Assistants and directly recruited Assistants which will affect the promotional chances of the promotees. For redressal of their common and collective grievance and in order to avoid multiplicity of proceedings before this court, the petitioners are jointly filing a single writ petition.

3. The learned Special Government Pleader in support of his contentions he has produced the Excerpt Copy of the Rule 35(aa) of the Tamilnadu State and Sub Ordinate Service Rules, the same is extracted here under:

“ 35(a) The seniority of a person in a service, class or category or grade shall unless he has been reduced to a lower rank as punishment be determined by the rank obtained by him in the list of approved candidates drawn up by the Tamilnadu Public Service Commission or other Appointing

Authority, as the case may be, subject to the rule of reservation where it applies. The date of commencement of his probation shall be the date on which he joints duty irrespective of his seniority.

* (aa) The seniority of a person in a service, class, category or grade shall, where the normal method of recruitment to that service, class, category or grade is by more than one method of recruitment, unless the individual has been reduced to a lower rank as a punishment, be determined with reference to the date on which he is appointed to the services, class, category or grade;

Provided that where the junior appointed by a particular method or recruitment happens to be appointed to a service, class, category or grade, earlier than the senior appointed by the same method of recruitment, the Senior shall be deemed to have been appointed to the service, class, category or grade on the same day on which the junior was so appointed.;

Provided further that the benefit of the above proviso shall be available to the senior only for the purpose of fixing inter-se-seniority;

Provided also that where persons appointed by more than one method of recruitment are appointed or deemed to have been appointed to the service, class, category or grade on the same day, their inter-se-seniority shall be decided with reference to their age”.

[* Substituted in G.O.Ms.No.523, P & AR, dated 04.06.82, w.e.f.13.07.78]

4. The learned Special Government Pleader also produced a counter affidavit filed by the 4th respondent ie., The District Collector, Panchayat Development Wing, Namakkal District, Namakkal in which it is submitted that in Namakkal District Seniority List for all categories of staff in the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Wing was prepared and published during every year with reference to the staff working as on 1st January of that year.

5. It is further submitted that, initially, the seniority list is published tentatively inviting claims and objections if any, from the individuals whose names are found place in it. The individuals are given reasonable time ie., 30 days to submit their claims if any, with regard to the rank assigned to them in the seniority list. The ten