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3. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners would vehemently contend that the petitioners are working as Office Assistants/Record Clerks as the case may be and they are governed by the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service. The Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service is a special rule governing the lower posts in the hierarchy of the Government service. As per the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service, the qualification prescribed for promotion to the post of Junior Bailiff is only VIII Standard and not X Standard. Therefore, according to the learned counsel for the petitioners, it is no longer open to the respondents to insist possession of S.S.L.C. qualification as a condition precedent for promoting the petitioners to the post of Junior Bailiff, as it is in violation of the provisions contained under the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service. Even in the earlier writ petition filed before this Court, this Court had specifically directed that unless the Service Rules are amended, the respondents http://www.judis.nic.in wp 3312 of 2019 cannot insist the petitioners to possess S.S.L.C. qualification and were directed to consider the claim of the petitioners for promotion in accordance with the existing Service Rules. It is further contended that till date, amendments were not made to the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service prescribing SSLC as minimum general educational qualification for promotion to the post of Junior Bailiff. It is also submitted that by reason of the denial of promotion to the petitioners on the ground that they did not possess SSLC qualification, the juniors of the petitioners have scaled the promotional ladder and thereby the petitioners are prejudiced. In any event, till date, the Service Rules were not amended requiring the petitioners to possess S.S.L.C. qualification to get promotion to the post of Junior Bailiff. Further, in all other Districts, similarly placed persons like the petitioners, who are holding the post of Office Assistants/Record Clerk, were given promotion and those persons are only holding VIII Standard qualification. Therefore, it is contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that the denial of promotion to the petitioners is unjust and arbitrary. It is also contended that the petitioners, through out their career, can get only one promotion to the post of Junior Bailiff/Process Server and even that is being denied by the respondents arbitrarily. When there is no amendments made to the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service, insisting SSLC qualification as a condition precedent for conferring promotion to the petitioners to the post of Junior Bailiff is illegal and arbitrary. The learned counsel for the petitioners therefore prayed for allowing this writ petition as prayed for.

4. Per contra, the learned Additional Advocate General appearing for the third respondent/Government would contend that prior to the enactment of Tamil http://www.judis.nic.in wp 3312 of 2019 Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Service) Act, 2016, the qualification prescribed for promotion to the post of Junior Bailiff was VIII Standard. It is further submitted that based on the V Pay Commission recommendations, the Government had changed the designation/nomenclature 'Process Server' into that of Junior Bailiff with revised scale of pay. Since the scale of pay to the post of Junior Bailiff comes under Group C from Group D, the Government issued G.O. (Ms) No.1653, Home (Courts V) Department dated 22.12.2018 whereby the designation 'Process Server' coming under Class III in Rule 1 of the Special Rules of the Tamil Nadu Basic Services has been deleted. There has been no mentioning in the said Government Order about the qualification prescribed for the post of Junior Bailiff. On the contrary Section 20 (1) (2) and (3) of Tamil Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Services) Act, 2016, which came into force since 2016, prescribes the minimum general educational qualification required to be possessed by a candidate for appointment and promotion to any post in the Government service which is applicable to the petitioners as well. The petitioners are coming under Judicial Ministerial Service and they are governed by the Tamil Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Services) Act, 2016 which was introduced in the year 2016.

8. On the above contention, this Court also heard the learned counsel appearing for the respective respondents 1 and 2.

9. Keeping the above submissions made by the learned counsel on either side, we have carefully gone through the records. We find that the post of http://www.judis.nic.in wp 3312 of 2019 Process Servers comes under Category 3 of Class III in Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service. In the very same Rule, the post of Office Assistant comes under category V of Class III. Rule 5 of the Special Rules for Tamil Nadu Basic Service deals with Qualification required to be possessed for various posts covered by the Special Rules. Rule 5 (2) (a) deals with educational qualification which reads as follows:-