Kerala High Court

Seema K. vs State Of Kerala on 11 February, 2021

               IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM

                               PRESENT

          THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN

    THURSDAY, THE 11TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 2021 / 22ND MAGHA,1942

                      WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)


PETITIONERS:

      1        SEEMA K., U.P.S.A, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O.THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

      2        SEEBA K. BABU, U.P.S.A, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O. THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

      3        ACHUTHAN P.P., U.P.S.A, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O. THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

      4        CHANDRAN T., U.P.S.A, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O. THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

      5        KUNHIRAMAN T., AGED 56 YEARS
               S/O. GOVINDAN, U.P.S.A, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O. THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

               BY ADV. SRI.M.VIJAYAKUMAR

RESPONDENTS:

      1        STATE OF KERALA
               REPRESENTED BY SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT, GENERAL
               EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695 001.

      2        DIRECTOR GENERAL OF EDUCATION
               JAGATHY, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695 014

      3        DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION
               OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR, KANNUR-670 001.

      4        ASSISTANT EDUCATIONAL OFFICER
               PANOOR SUB DISTRICT, P.O. PANOOR-670 692.

      5        THE MANAGER, KOLAVALLOOR U.P. SCHOOL,
               P.O. THUVAKKUNNU-670 693.

               SRI.P.M.MANOJ (SR.GP)

     THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD          ON
11.02.2021, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
 WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)

                                    2



                              JUDGMENT

Dated this the 11th day of February 2021

The petitioners say that they are teachers working in

the "Kolavalloor U.P.School", Thuvakkunnu - of which the fifth

respondent is the Manager and that they have been

constrained to approach this Court impugning Exts.P1, P2,

P14 and P16 as being illegal and unlawful, since these orders

propose to mulct them with liabilities on the allegation that

there were "bogus admissions" in the school.

2. The specific case of the petitioners is that there were

no such admissions and that, in any event of the matter, they

cannot be held responsible, unless the provisions of Section

12A of the Kerala Education Act (for short 'the Act') had been

complied with by the competent Authorities. They assert that

for attracting the provisions of Rules 15 and 16 of Chapter

XXIII of the Kerala Education Rules (KER), the staff fixation

order should clearly indicate that the admissions were caused

on account of misrepresentation and that the Authorities

should have gone into the details of those students who were

on long absence and whose transfer certificates had been

issued validly.

WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)

3. The petitioners say that impugned orders have been

issued without considering any of these aspects, particularly

the details of 11 students available from the various relevant

records maintained by the school - which are also

enumerated in paragraph 1 of this writ petition - which

would clearly establish that none of them were "bogus

admissions" and therefore, that all action proposed against

them are illegal.

4. Sri.M.Vijayakumar, learned counsel appearing for the

petitioners, submitted that pending this lis, as a corollary to

Ext.P16 order, Ext.P20 show cause notice has been issued to

his clients asking them to show cause why action should not

be taken against them for reduction of two increments

allegedly on account of their involvement in the "bogus

admissions". Sri.M.Vijayakumar submits that all these orders

are without any basis since, as is evident from the materials

produced on record, the petitioners have explained the

details of 11 students who have been found to be "bogus

admissions"; but that the Authorities have rushed into

conclusions without following the imperative procedure,

including under Section 12A of the Act.

5. Sri.M.Vijayakumar thereafter, submitted that WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)

whatever be the contentions that the respondents may now

raise, a learned Division Bench of this Court, in

W.A.No.2552/2015, has now affirmatively declared that

teachers like his clients cannot be held responsible for

"bogus admissions" and that too without following due

process under the Kerala Education Act and Rules.

Sri.M.Vijayakumar, therefore, prays that this writ petition be

allowed and Exts.P1, P2, P14 and P16, along with Ext.P20, be

set aside.

6. In response, the learned Senior Government Pleader,

Sri.P.M.Manoj, submitted that action was warranted against

the teachers since the competent Authorities found that there

were several admissions in the school which were

unexplained and the students were found to be repeatedly

missing. The learned Senior Government Pleader submitted

that, therefore, as teachers of the school, the petitioners were

also responsible for such "bogus admissions" and therefore,

that the competent Educational Authorities were well within

their powers to have issued impugned orders. He, therefore,

prayed that this writ petition be dismissed.

7. The dialectical contentions of the parties being afore

recorded, I must say upfront that, as per the judgment of a WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)

learned Division Bench of this Court in W.A.No.2552/2015 - a

copy of which is on record as Ext.P17 - it is now extremely

doubtful if any action against the petitioners can be taken

forward. This is particularly because the pleadings on record

virtually concede that no action had been initiated by the

competent Authorities under Section 12A of the Act prior to

the issuance of the impugned order and further because the

contention of the petitioners, that 11 students had been

granted transfer certificates in the various dates mentioned

in paragraph 1 of this writ petition, has not been verified or

scrutinized by them at any time. Obviously therefore, the

proceedings now initiated against the petitioners cannot find

favour in law and I, therefore, deem it necessary to allow this

writ petition as prayed for.

In the afore circumstances, I order this writ petition and

set aside Exts.P1, P2, P14 and P16 along with Ext.P20 and

order that no action against the petitioners shall be pursued

in any manner with respect to the allegation of "bogus

admissions" for the academic year 2017 - 18.




                                         DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN
     Stu                                        JUDGE
 WP(C).No.17440 OF 2020(D)






                                APPENDIX
     PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:

     EXHIBIT P1         PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE ORDER OF THE 2ND
                        RERSPONDENT DATED 15.5.2018.

     EXHIBIT P2         PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE ORDER

NO.S.C/102/2018/K.K.D DATED 27.12.2018 OF THE 2ND RESPONDENT.

EXHIBIT P3 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P4 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P5 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P6 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P7 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P8 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P9 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P10 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P11 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P12 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF THE STUDENT.

EXHIBIT P13 PHOTOSTAT COPY OF THE REVISION PETITION FILED BY THE MANAGER BEFROE THE IST RESPONDENT DATED 14.2.2019.