IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) TUESDAY, THE TWENTY FIFTH DAY OF MARCH TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MRS JUSTICE T.MEENA KUMARI and THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S. ASHOK KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO : 20467 of 2007 Between: 1 The Government of A.P.., repby the Principal Secretary to Government, I& CAD Department A.P., Secretary, Hyderabad. 2 Engineer-in-Chief (Admn. Wing), Irrigation& CAD Department, Jalasoudha Buildings, A.P.,Hyderabad. ..... PETITIONERS AND 1 N. Lakshmana Rao S/o Ramana No;II Dowlaiswaram, East Godavari District. 2 T. Seshagiri Rao S/o Radhakantam, O/o Chief Engineer, Indira Sagar Project, Dowlaiswaram, East Godavari District. 3 A. Surya Chandra Rao S/o Subbarayudu Engineer (Retd) R/o Old Post Office Street, Dowlaiswaram, East Godavari District 4 S.S. Bhaskara Reddy S/o S. Peda sathi Reddy D.S. M.C. Division No. 2 Dowlasiwam East Godavari district. 5 K. Rami Reddy S/o Ram Krishna Reddy Division No5; Vijayawada, Krishnadistrict. 6 D. Mallikarjuna Rao S/o Venkata Subbaiah ISMC. DivisionNo.5, Vijayawada, Krishna District. 7 S.E. PremavarammS/o Daniel Div No. 25, Nuzuvid, Krishna District 8 D. Nageswara Rao S/o Subba Rao ISHW. Div. No. 1. Polavaram, West Godavari District. 9 S. Sri Hari S/o S. Viswanadham, ISLMC. Division Prathipadu East Godavari District. 10 K. Venkata Reddy S/o Subbi Reddy R/o Chinnamvaripalem, Ravulapalem, East Godavari District. 11 K. Venkata Rama nanda Chowdary S/o Seetharamaiah T.R.L.I.S. Sub-Division-4 PWD. Grounds, Vijayawada, Krishna District. .....RESPONDENTS Petition under Article 226 of the constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the Affidavit filed herein the High Court will be pleased to issue a Writ of Certiorari or any other appropriate Writ, Order direction calling for the records relating to and connected in O.A. No. 5466/2006 dated 25-08-2006 on the file of Hon'ble A.P. Administrative Tribunal and quash the same and pass such other order or orders as may be deemed fit and proper in the circumstances of the case. Counsel for the Petitioner: THE ADVOCATE GENERAL Counsel for the Respondent : MR.V.MALLIK FOR R-1-11 The Court made the following : THE HON'BLE SMT. JUSTICE T.MEENA KUMARI & THE HON'BLE SRI. JUSTICE S.ASHOK KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO :20467 of 2007 ORDER: (Per the Honourable Smt. Justice T.Meena Kumari) This writ petition is filed by the petitioners seeking to set aside the order passed by the tribunal in O.A.No:5466 of 2006 on 25.08.2006. The petitioners herein are the respondents and the respondents herein are the applicants before the tribunal. Originally, the applicants filed the O.A. seeking to declare the action of the respondents therein in not extending the benefits of the orders of the tribunal in O.A.No.3156 of 1998 and O.A.No.8811 of 1998, dated 5.11.2003 to them as illegal and arbitrary and consequently, to direct the respondents therein to extend the benefits of the orders of the Tribunal in the above O.As and G.O.Rt.No.9, Irrigation & CAD (Ser.I) Dept., dated 3.1.2006 to the applicants, on par with the applicants in those O.As. On the submission made by the learned Counsel for the applicants as well as the learned Government Pleader that the applicants herein are similarly situated as in O.As No.3156 and 8811 of 1998, dated 5.11.2003 and therefore, the applicants in the present O.A., are entitled to the orders passed in the said O.As., the Tribunal disposed of the O.A. in terms of the orders of the tribunal dated 5.11.2003 in the said O.As. Now, the authorities filed the present writ petition contending that the Government through G.O.Rt.No.1579 dated 18.11.2006 have decided to extend the benefit of G.O.Ms.No.9, dated 3.1.2006 to the applicants in the other O.As as well as the others those who have not approached the tribunal and that the extension of G.O.Ms.No.9 shall be confined only for those who are eligible as per the recommendations of Board of Chief Engineers and that either the proposal of the Chief Engineer or the recommendation of the Board of Chief Engineers was confined only for certain Draughtsmen but not to all the Draughtsmen and that the tribunal while disposing of O.As.3156 and 8811 of 1998 did not consider the aspect as to whether such extension of G.O.Ms.No.26 shall be given to all the Draughtsmen and that G.O.Ms.No.9, dated 3.1.2006 and G.O.Rt.No.1579 dated 28.11.2006 referred to and confined to Draughtsmen, who have started the dispute way back in 1986, but not for all the Draughtsmen in the department and that the Government through memo dated 27.12.2006 clarified the scope of G.O.Rt.No.1579 that the dispensation shall be confined only to such of the draughtsmen who are actually entitled as per the recommendations of the Board of Chief Engineers. It is further contended that the Draughtsmen, who were appointed after the abolition of the posts of overseers cannot claim any benefit in comparison with overseers as their recruitment itself is after the abolition of the posts of overseers. It is further contended that the tribunal has not gone into the merits of the case and that the respondents-applicants are not entitled to get the benefits that would be extended in the earlier O.As. Heard and perused the material available on record. On a perusal of the order impugned, it is obvious that it is a consented order. Now, the approach of the authorities by taking a different stand without furnishing any reasons as to the eligibility criteria of each individual-applicant, is not sustainable. In this view of the matter, we are not inclined to go into the merits of the case in view of the earlier order passed by the tribunal in O.A.Nos.3156 and 8811 of 1998, which has become final. In these circumstances, We feel that this writ petition is devoid of merits and the same is liable to be dismissed. Accordingly, this writ petition is dismissed. No order as to costs. ____________________ Justice T.Meena Kumari ___________________ Justice S.Ashok Kumar Dated:25.3.2008 Gurc/nn THE HON'BLE SMT. JUSTICE T.MEENA KUMARI & THE HON'BLE SRI. JUSTICE S.ASHOK KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO :20467 of 2007 (Division Bench Order delivered by the Honourable Smt. Justice T.Meena Kumari) 25/03/2008