Facts
21 applicants, comprising Under Secretaries and Section Officers from various Union Ministries (including Housing & Urban Affairs, DoPT, Finance, and Home Affairs), filed a joint Original Application (O.A.) before the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Principal Bench, New Delhi.
Source reference: p. 1-3They sought common reliefs regarding a shared cause of action, alongside a Miscellaneous Application (M.A. No. 2054/2026) for permission to join together in a single petition.
Source reference: p. 4During the hearing, the applicants' counsel sought to withdraw the O.A. after initial arguments.
Source reference: p. 4Issues
1. Whether the applicants should be permitted to join together in a single Original Application under the Procedural Rules of the Tribunal.
Source reference: p. 4, para 12. Whether the applicants are entitled to the reliefs sought in light of the Ministry of Finance OM dated 28.09.2018 and the 6th Central Pay Commission (CPC) recommendations.
Source reference: p. 4, para 2Law Applied
The Tribunal applied the procedural rules allowing for joint petitions (Multiple Applicants) where a common cause of action exists.
Source reference: no citationRecommendations of the 6th Central Pay Commission (CPC) and the Office Memorandum (OM) dated 28.09.2018 issued by the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure.
Source reference: p. 4Reasoning
The Tribunal first addressed the procedural M.A., noting that because the 21 applicants shared a common cause of action and sought identical relief, the application for joining together was maintainable and subsequently allowed.
Source reference: p. 4, para 2Regarding the merits, the respondents argued that the legal and administrative issues raised by the applicants regarding their service conditions or pay had been previously settled by existing government policy, specifically referring to an order dated 27.04.2026 and the 2018 Ministry of Finance OM.
Source reference: p. 4, para 2Following these submissions and preliminary arguments, the counsel for the applicants opted to withdraw the litigation rather than pursue a decision on the merits.
Source reference: p. 4-5Holding
The Tribunal allowed the Miscellaneous Application for joining together.
Upon the request of the applicants' counsel, the Original Application was dismissed as withdrawn.
Source reference: p. 5, para 3No order was made as to costs.
Source reference: p. 5Original Court PDF
Shri Hari Mohan JhavsDEPARTMENT OF EXPENDITURE
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