DINU SARA THOMAS Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner says that she is working as an HSST (Junior) Chemistry, in the Baker Memorial Girls HSS, Kottayam, under the management of the 4th respondent-Corporate Manager; and that she has been constrained to approach this Court seeking a declaration that Ext.P7 order issued by the 3rd respondent- Regional Deputy Director (RDD) - declining her approval of appointment solely for the reason that the Manager of the School has not produced the seniority list of teachers in the Schools under it - is illegal and unlawful.

(2.) The petitioner says that she cannot be penalised for the omissions of the Manager, particularly when he is under a statutory obligation as per the provisions of Rule 34 Chapter XIVA of the Kerala Education Rules (KER for short), to maintain the seniority list every year and consequently, that the RDD was wholly in error in having denied her approval for this reason alone. She, therefore, prays that the impugned order, namely Ext.P7, be set aside and the 3rd respondent be directed to approve her appointment in terms of Ext.P6 issued by the Manager.

(3.) In response to the afore submissions made on behalf of the petitioner by her learned counsel, Sri.George Varghese Perumpallikuttiyil, the learned Senior Government Pleader, Smt.Nisha Bose, submitted that as long as the Manager does not finalise the seniority list of all the schools under it, it will be difficult for the educational authorities to grant approval of the petitioner because they will not be in a position to verify whether there are any senior claimants awaiting in the queue. The learned Senior Government Pleader, therefore, submitted that even though the petitioner has produced the declaration given by the Manager of the School, namely Ext.P6, to the effect that there are no disputes with respect to the appointment of teachers in the school and that there are no senior teachers awaiting their claims, it will not be justified for the Authorities to act upon the same and to grant approval to the petitioner.