B USHA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WRIT petition by as many as nine persons, some of whom were working as non-teaching staff at the Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Residential School, Regigudda, shimoga as well as in the girls hostel attached to this school run by the fifth respondent-Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Mission Public Trust (Regd.), ragigudda, Shimoga with the first petitioner was working as assistant teacher in the very school, all of whom are claiming that the orders passed by the first respondent-State of karnataka and its officers in the department of public instructions viz. , second respondent-Commissioner of Public Instructions; third respondent-Director (High School), Department of Public Instructions; and fourth respondent-Deputy Director of Public Instructions, on 1-1-2003 (Annexure-Q to the writ petition)and 22-9-2003 (Annexure-T to the writ petition), have the effect of throwing them out of their employment and therefore have sought for quashing of these two government orders. The petitioners, in the alternative, have also sought for issue of a writ in the nature of mandamus to direct the State and its offices in the department of public instructions to consider the representations of the petitioners dated 22-12-2003 as per Annexure-U, U1 and U2 and to direct the State to pass appropriate orders on the same.

(2.) PETITIONERS have contended that they had been working as employees on the fifth respondent-residential school or in the girls hostel attached to the school, run by the very management and were working for long number of years, that their management had never paid them full salary and wages payable to them as per the government norms and as stipulated in the grant-in-aid Code (for short, the code); that the effect of the impugned orders passed by the government is only to retain the services of respondents 6 to 24, who were also working like the petitioners in the very school/hostel to the detriment and at the cost of the petitioners; that as a result of the impugned orders, while the writ petitioners stand to lose their job and even the meagre salaries they were getting for working in the school or hostel and as was being paid by the fifth respondent-management will be stopped on the other hand, respondents 6 to 24, whose services are now retained, stand to gain by getting salaries and allowances as is payable under the Code and after the impugned or ders, though these respondents also were getting less salary like the petitioners hitherto. The petitioners have contended that the impugned orders, which have the effect of putting an end to the employment of the petitioners, are orders passed without according any opportunity to the petitioners, without examining their cases and position in the proper perspective or in terms of the relevant laws; that the orders are virtually arbitrary orders and are required to be quashed.

(3.) THE respondents had been put on notice and after preliminary hearing, subsequent to the respondent being represented through counsel and on filing objections, this petition was admitted on 20-6-2007, observing, inter alia, as under: