Madras High Court
R.L.Bennet Singh vs The Government Of Tamil Nadu on 15 July, 2021
W.P.No.30363 of 2019
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED: 15.07.2021
CORAM:
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE M.S. RAMESH
W.P.No.30363 of 2019
and W.M.P.No.30352 of 2019
1.R.L.Bennet Singh
2.C.Reju
3.D.Santhakumari ...Petitioners
Vs
1.The Government of Tamil Nadu
rep.by its Secretary, School Education Department
Fort St.George, Chennai - 600 009.
2.The Director of Elementary Education
College Road, DPI Campus
Chennai - 600 006.
3.The District Elementary Education Officer
Kanniyakumari Dist. Nagarcoil - 629 001.
4.The Assistant Elementary Education Officer
Munchirai Range, Pudukadai Post, Vilavancode TK,
KK Dist - 629 171.
5.The Correspondent, St. Stephen's Primary School, (South)
Palavilai Velayudha Nadar,
Kollamcode Post, KK Dist-629 160. ...Respondents
1/10
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis/
W.P.No.30363 of 2019
PRAYER: Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of
India to issue a Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus calling for the records
pertaining to the order passed by the 1st respondent in G.O.Ms.No.54
School Education Department dated 12.03.2015 and the order passed by
the 3rd respondent in Na.Ka.No.2651/B3/2017, dated 21.11.2017 and
quash the same and consequently direct the respondents 1 to 4 to approve
the appointment of the petitioners and pay their salary from the date of
appointment and consequently deploy them to a school where there is
shortage of teachers.
For Petitioners : Mr.Ebenezer Paul
For Respondents : Mr.K.V.Sajeev Kumar
Counsel for Government for RR1 to 4
Mr.K.Sathish Kumar for R5
ORDER
By consent of both the parties, this writ petition is taken up for
final disposal.
2.This Writ Petition has been filed to call for the records pertaining
to the order passed by the 1st respondent in G.O.Ms.No.54 School
Education Department dated 12.03.2015 and the order passed by the 3rd
respondent in Na.Ka.No.2651/B3/2017, dated 21.11.2017 and quash the
same and consequently direct the respondents 1 to 4 to approve the
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
appointment of the petitioners and pay their salary from the date of
appointment and consequently deploy them to a school where there is
shortage of teachers.
3.All the three petitioners herein were appointed in the sanctioned
vacancies that arose in the 5th respondent, Aided Minority School.
While, the 1st petitioner herein was appointed on 30.04.2011, in the
vacancy, which arose due to the retirement of one Lizi Dani on
30.04.2011, the 2nd and 3rd petitioners were appointed in the vacancies
of E.A.Rexeline on 31.05.2012 and R.Joseph Renso on 13.01.2011,
respectively.
4.When the 5th respondent herein had sought for approval of the
appointment of these three petitioners as Secondary Grade Teachers, the
Chief Educational Officer and District Elementary Education Officer,
Kanyakumari District, had by his order dated 21.11.2017, rejected the
approval application on the ground that, among the five approved teacher
posts, two teachers were allowed to continue and three Secondary Grade
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
Teachers were rendered as surplus, which required to be surrendered to
the general list. The impugned order placed reliance on the
G.O(Ms).No.54, School Education Department order dated 12.03.2015.
5.Mr.Ebenezer Paul, learned counsel for the petitioners submitted
that the action of the respondents in rejecting the request for approval of
the appointment of the petitioners is opposed under Rule 26 of the Tamil
Nadu Private School Regulation Act and also to various decisions
rendered by this Court including the Judgment in S.Rasheetha Banu Vs.
State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by its Secretary to Government, Chennai and
others, Reported in (2012) 4 MLJ 198. The contention of the learned
counsel for the petitioners was reiterated by the counsel for the 5th
respondent School also.
6.On the other hand, the learned counsel for the Government
placed reliance on the counter statements and submitted that three posts
in the 5th respondent School have been rendered as surplus and only two
posts were allowed to be retained by taking into account of the students –
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
teacher ratio. Hence, approval to the posts cannot be granted in view of
the fall in the students strength.
7.The issued involved in the present Writ Petition as to the
correctness of the decision of the authorities in rejecting the approval
petition on the ground that the fall in the students strength, has came up
for consideration on various occasions and in one of the decisions before
the Division Bench of this Court in W.A.No.1263 of 2001, dated
22.01.2004, it was held that whenever there is a fall in the strength of the
students, the approval petition cannot be rejected but requires to be
approved by transferring the said teacher or deploying them to a needy
school. The decision of the Hon’ble Division Bench was relied upon by a
learned Single Judge in the case of S.Rasheetha (supra) and the relevant
portion of the findings, reads as follows:
"6.The issue to be decided in this Writ Petition is as to
whether the petitioner was appointed in a sanctioned
post. Admittedly, on 01.04.1998, the post of
Secondary Grade Teacher became vacant and the
petitioner was appointed in the sanctioned post. The
only objection raised is that the fifth respondent
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
school was not declared as a Minority Institution. On
a perusal of the records, it is seen that the Civil Suit
filed by the fifth respondent school was dismissed and
the Judgment and Decree passed by the Lower Court
was reversed in the appeal filed by the fifth
respondent school, which was confirmed in the said
Second Appeal filed by the department. The
Government also sanctioned arrears of salary
payable to the petitioner. The fall in strength of the
students took place in the year 2003-2004, which
cannot be a ground to reject the approval of
appointment of the petitioner from 01.04.1998.
7.The issue involved in this Writ Petition was
already considered by a Division Bench of this Court
in W.A.No.1263 of 2001, dated 22.01.2004. In the
said Judgment, it is held that if a person is appointed
in a sanctioned post, the approval of appointment
cannot be rejected and if there is fall in strength and
the post become surplus, after granting approval of
the post, the said teacher along with post could be
transferred/deployed to a needy school. The said
Judgment of the Division Bench was followed in
W.P.(MD).No.11353 of 2008 dated 11.09.2009. As
against the said order dated 11.09.2009, the
department preferred W.A.(MD).No.703 of 2009. A
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
Division Bench of this Court, by Judgment dated
01.02.2011, dismissed the said Writ Appeal."
8.The aforesaid ratio is a reiteration of Section 26 of the Tamil
Nadu Recognized School Regulation Act, which reads as follows:
“26.Absorption of Teachers or other persons on
retrenchment.- Where any retrenchment of any Teacher
or other person employed in any private school is
rendered necessary consequent on any order of the
Government relating to education or course of
instruction or to any other matter, [or consequent on the
reduction in strength of the pupil’s studying in any such
private school] it shall be competent for the
Government or the School Committee of any private
school to appoint such Teacher or other person in any
school or institution maintained by the Government or in
such private school, as the case may be.
[Explanation.-For the purpose of this section, the
strength of the pupil’s shall be determined in accordance
with the norms fixed in the Grant-in-Aid Code of the
Tamil Nadu Education Department or under any Rule,
Regulation or other as may be made or issued by the
Government or the Director of School Education, from
time to time, for appointment of Teachers or others in
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
any private school].
9.A combined reading of Rule 26 of the Act, with the decisions of
this Court particularly in the case of S.Rasheetha (supra) as extracted
above lays down the proposition that, even in cases when there is a fall in
the students strength and the post of Secondary Grade Teachers are
rendered as surplus, the authorities are bound to grant approval for the
appointments made to such teachers, who are absorbed in the approved
vacancies and thereafter either transfer them or re-deploy them to other
needy schools. The official respondent's have deviated from this legal
proposition in the impugned order by rejecting the request for approval
of the appointment of these three Secondary Grade Teachers. As such the
impugned rejection order cannot be sustained.
10.In the light of the above discussions, the impugned order dated
21.11.2017 in Na.Ka.No.2651/B3/2017, on the file of the the 3rd
respondent is hereby quashed, consequently, the respondents 1 to 4 are
directed to grant approval to the appointment of these petitioners from
their respective dates of appointment and thereafter if the authorities are
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W.P.No.30363 of 2019
still of the view that there are surplus teacher posts in the 5 th respondent
School, they shall re-deploy the petitioners herein to such needy schools,
where their services may be required.
11.The respondents shall endeavor to grant the approval orders at
the earliest, in any case, within a period of six weeks from the date of
receipt of a copy of this order. Accordingly, this Writ Petition is allowed.
No costs. Consequently connected miscellaneous petition is closed.
15.07.2021
Index:Yes/No
Internet:Yes/No
Speaking order/Non-speaking order
Jer
1.The Secretary,
Government of Tamil Nadu,
School Education Department
Fort St.George, Chennai - 600 009.
2.The Director of Elementary Education
College Road, DPI Campus
Chennai - 600 006.
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis/
W.P.No.30363 of 2019
M.S.RAMESH,J.
Jer
3.The District Elementary Education Officer
Kanniyakumari Dist. Nagarcoil - 629 001.
4.The Assistant Elementary Education Officer
Munchirai Range, Pudukadai Post, Vilavancode TK,
KK Dist - 629 171.
W.P.No.30363 of 2019
and W.M.P.No.30352 of 2019
15.07.2021
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis/
