Madras High Court
B.Stepha Sharon vs The District Educational Officer on 30 September, 2024
Author: R.Subramanian
Bench: R.Subramanian
W.A(MD)No.1704 of 2024
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED : 30.09.2024
CORAM :
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE R.SUBRAMANIAN
and
THE HONOURABLE MRS.JUSTICE L.VICTORIA GOWRI
W.A(MD)No.1704 of 2024
B.Stepha Sharon ... Appellant
vs.
1. The District Educational Officer,
O/o.Valliyoor District Educational Officer,
Valliyoor, Tirunelveli District.
2. The Block Educational Officer,
O/o. Block Educational Officer,
Nanguneri, Tirunelveli District.
3. The Correspondent,
Jawahar National Middle School,
Subramaniapuram, Emmankulam Post,
Nanguneri Taluk,
Tirunelveli District. ... Respondents
Prayer : Appeal filed under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent, against the
order dated 12.06.2023 in W.P(MD)No.6339 of 2023.
For Appellant : Mr.P.P.Alwin Balan
For R1 & R2 : Mr.S.P.Maharajan
Special Government Pleader
For R3 : Mr.V.S.Kishore Kumar
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Page No.1 of 4
W.A(MD)No.1704 of 2024
JUDGMENT
(Judgement of the Court was made by R.SUBRAMANIAN, J.)
The challenge in this appeal is to the order of the Writ Court dated
12.06.2023 made in W.P(MD)No.6339 of 2023, in and by which, the Writ
Court upheld the order of the Education Department refusing to approve the
appointment of the appellant as Headmistress of a Middle School on the ground
that the appellant did not possess the work experience i.e., five years for having
appointed as a Headmistress.
2. This is one of the rarest of rare cases where the Education
Department has passed a correct order refusing approval. The teacher relied
upon G.O.Ms.No.97, School Education Department, dated 05.07.2001, to claim
exemption from the requirement of 5 years work experience. The scope of
G.O.Ms.No.97, School Education Department, dated 05.07.2001 is no longer
res integra. A Division Bench of this Court in The Secretary to Government,
Department of School Education, Chennai and others vs. V.Jeevitha and
others [W.A(MD)Nos.80 and 308 of 2022, dated 08.03.2024] had held that
the relaxation in G.O.Ms.No.97, School Education Department, dated
05.07.2001 is subject to the following conditions:
''(a) The concerned candidate who seeks exemption should be the senior
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most teacher within the same school / school management.
(b) No other teacher who is fully qualified should be available within the
same school / school management.
(c) Only in cases where the teachers who are fully qualified are not
available within the school / school management, the school management should
approach the employment exchange or going in for a direct recruitment.
(d) When fully qualified candidates are not available even through
employment exchange / direct recruitment, thereafter exemption could be granted
to the concerned teacher with regard to teaching experience of 5 years.''
3. Even in the case on hand, it has not been made out that those
conditions have been satisfied. There were two B.T teachers in the school, of
whom, one was the Headmistress. Since the incumbent retired, the petitioner
was appointed as the other B.T teacher expressed her unwillingness to be the
Headmistress. It is not shown that there was an attempt to seek a fully qualified
person by approaching the employment exchange as per the condition (c)
above. We are, therefore, unable to fault the Writ Court for having dismissed
the writ petition. The Writ Appeal, therefore, fails and it is accordingly
dismissed. No costs.
(R.S.M, J.) (L.V.G, J.)
Index : Yes / No 30.09.2024
Neutral Citation : Yes / No
bala
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R.SUBRAMANIAN, J.
and
L.VICTORIA GOWRI, J.
bala
To
1. The District Educational Officer,
O/o.Valliyoor District Educational Officer,
Valliyoor,
Tirunelveli District.
2. The Block Educational Officer,
O/o. Block Educational Officer,
Nanguneri,
Tirunelveli District.
JUDGMENT MADE IN
DATED : 30.09.2024
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