JACOB Vs. ZACHARIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A claim for appointment to the post of a Principal of a private College asserted as early as May 1970, survives for consideration in these two appeals, even now, though the main claimant has retired from service. It is unnecessary to traverse the facts in detail as the controversy before us lies in a fairly short compass. We are also for that matter not referring elaborately to the two writ petitions and the two writ appeals disposed of earlier which required the Kerala University Appellate Tribunal to consider and reconsider the issue on more than one occasion.

(2.) The vacancy for the post of a Principal, B.A.M. College, Thuruthikadu. arose in 1970, when Prof. K. T. George retired from service on attaining the superannuation age, at the end of the academic year, 1969-70. Sri. K. P. Zachariah, (whom we shall describe hereafter as the respondent), a Lecturer in the College, was put in charge of the post of Principal till a permanent appointment was made to the post. The order dated 3-5-1970, in the form of a letter, on which the main argument is advanced, is extracted below:-

(3.) On 28-5-1977, Sri. N. V. Jacob, the appellant in W.A. No. 685 of 1987 (whom we shall describe as the appellant hereafter) was appointed as Principal on probation and this order is extracted below:-