ALBERT Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, a Junior Superintendent in the establishment of the Directorate of Public Instruction, the respondent No. 3 herein, is currently working as Junior Superintendent in the offices under the control of the Director of Higher Secondary Education, the respondent No. 2. He is on deputation to the office under the Director of Higher Secondary Education. He has since been promoted as Superintendent in his parent department, namely, the Directorate of Public Instruction. Therefore the respondent No. 1 the State of Kerala proposes to terminate his deputation with the respondent No. 2. By order No. D3/9051/93/DPI dated 28-1-1993, the State of Kerala extended the deputation of all employees except the petitioner. In this petition under Art.226 of the Constitution of India the petitioner seeks an order (i) directing the State of Kerala the respondent No. 1 to stop all proceedings to transfer the petitioner from the office of the 2nd respondent where he is on deputation and (ii) a direction to the respondents 1 and 2 to complete the formalities of absorption and regularisation of the service of the petitioner in the office of the respondent No. 2 before filling up the vacancy of the Joint Director (Examinations).

(2.) In a nut shell, the petitioner's case is this. He has been on deputation in the Directorate of Higher Secondary Education where he expects to be promoted to higher positions like the Joint Director (Examinations). The State of Kerala has set afoot the process of absorption and regularisation of the employees on deputation. The petitioner, if continued on deputation has a "right" to be so absorbed and promoted to a higher post created in the Directorate of Higher Secondary Education. The proposed action of the respondents in bringing on deputation employees from the Universities will harm the petitioner's prospects of promotion in the Directorate where he seeks absorption.

(3.) In order to appreciate the submissions made herein the facts in regard to the petitioner's deputation and the reason for the action of the respondents may be set out. The facts are in the counter affidavit of the State of Kerala. The National Education Policy envisages re-organisation of the Secondary and Collegiate Education, whereunder the Pre degree Course or the 11th and 12th standards would become a part of the organisation of the Higher Secondary Education. In other words, the Pre degree education would be transferred to the schools. In order to effectuate the policy the Directorate of Higher Secondary Education was constituted. It commenced its work with a nuclear staff consisting of a Special Officer, a Junior Superintendent and clerks. The petitioner, a deputationist, belongs to this nuclear staff. The deputationists were initially taken from the Directorate of Public Instruction. As and when the Pre degree course is transferred from the Universities and is made a part of the Higher Secondary Education, the ministerial staff in the Universities may be rendered surplus. The employees of the private colleges affiliated to the colleges have also staked their claims for absorption in the Higher Secondary Education Department which the Government is committed to consider. With the twin object of protecting the interest of surplus staff of the Universities and protecting the existing deputationists working in the Directorate of Higher Secondary Education the posts have been allocated to different units. One post each of junior Superintendent has been allotted to the deputationists from the Directorate of Collegiate Education and the Directorate of Public Instruction. The petitioner occupies one such post. The only post of Senior Superintendent has been re-allotted to the staff of the Kerala University which may be rendered surplus. The post of Joint Director of Examination has been reserved for the personnel from the universities. The petitioner is proposed to be repatriated to the parent department because he has been promoted as senior superintendent in the parent department and the post of senior superintendent in the Directorate of Higher Secondary Education has been allotted to the Kerala University.