JUDGMENT

Altamas Kabir, J.

1. These three Special Leave Petitions are directed against the judgment and order dated 12.7.2011, passed by the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court in C.P. No.2209 of 2009, affirming the order of the learned Single Judge which had been upheld by the Division Bench of the High Court regarding the appointment of Pharmacists in the State of Uttar Pradesh. So as to understand how the matter reached the High Court, it is necessary to set out a few facts which led to the filing of the Writ Petitions.

2. By way of an advertisement dated 12.11.2007, 766 vacancies were advertised for being filled up by diploma holders in Pharmacy. The advertisement provided that the recruitment could be done as per the U.P. Procedure for Direct Recruitment of Group ‘C’ Posts (Outside the Purview of Public Service Commission) Rules, 2000. The said advertisement led to controversies as to how the appointments were to be filled up.

3. According to the Respondents, the interpretation of Rule 15(2) of the U.P. Pharmacists Service Rules, 1980, hereinafter referred to as the “1980 Rules”, required the diploma holders to be appointed against the vacancies which became available