GRAMA COMMITTEE HIGH SCHOOL VENKATESWARAPURAM Vs. ARUNACHALAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner in W. P. 3566 of 1984, hereinafter referred to as the petitioner, was the Headmaster of Grama Committee High School, Venkateswarapuram, Tenkasi Taluk, Tirunelveli Dt. , from June 1959. The School represented by its Secretary is the petitioner in W. P. 6868 of 1984 hereinafter referred to as the respondent.

(2.) THE petitioner was on medical leave from 15th October 1982 to 12th December 1982. On 7th December 1982 he sent a letter to the Secretary of the respondent that he was resigning his post of Headmaster with effect from that date even though he was on medical leave. The petitioner made an entry in the Masters' attendance register for December 1982, as against his name 'resigned of his own accord. Left from service'. In the Executive Committee meeting held on 12th December 1982, the resignation was accepted and one N. Kalidhasan, who was a first Assistant in the school, was appointed as Headmaster in charge until a new Headmaster was appointed. One of the resolutions passed by the Executive Committee was that the petitioner should hand over charge immediately to the Secretary. Another resolution was that a sum Rs. 10,795 which the petitioner had retained in his hands without depositing in the Teacher's Provident Fund account, should be handed over by him to the Secretary immediately. The resolution, passed by the Committee were signed by five members of the Committee. It is common ground that the Committee consisted of eight members only including the petitioner.

(3.) ON 15th December 1982, the Secretary of the respondent sent a letter to the petitioner informing him of the acceptance of his resignation by the Executive Committee and requesting him to hand over all the school records and charge immediately. On the same day, the Secretary sent letters to the District Educational Officer, Tirunelveli and the Chief Educational Officer, Tirunelveli informing them about the Headmaster's resignation and enclosed copies of his letter and the intimation of its acceptance. On receiving the intimation about the acceptance of the resignation, the petitioner wrote to the Secretary of the respondent a letter on 16th December 1982 in which he had made a complaint that the Secretary had not taken sufficient steps for the repayment of a sum of Rs. 55,000 advanced by the petitioner for the construction of the school. In that letter he had threatened that if the Secretary did not peacefully settle the matter, the rights and actions of the petitioner and others could not be controlled and that they being the majority, would take sufficient action to protect their rights. It is significant to note that in the said letter, the petitioner had not said anything about his resignation dated 7th December, 1982. On 21st December 1982, the petitioner sent a letter to the District Educational officer in which he had stated that a sum of Rs. 55,000 was due to him from the school and that in spite of his repeated demands, steps were not taken for repayment of the same. He had also stated that he sent his resignation letter dated 7th December 1982, as there was no discussion about the amount payable to him on 5th December 1982, and there was an attempt to enrol new members. He had also alleged that in the meeting held on 12th December 1982, majority of the members walked out as there was no discussion about the amount payable to him. He had informed the District Educational Officer that one of the members of the Committee by name S. Arumugham was in Virudhunagar as the Principal of Polytechnic and a decision would be taken in a meeting which would be held after the said Arumugham case. He had also stated that such decision would be communicated to the addressee who should take action there after. On 23rd December 1982, the Secretary to the respondent issued a notice through a lawyer to the petitioner calling upon him to handover all the records relating to the school within a week from the receipt of the notice and to pay the Teacher Provident fund amounts which had been withheld by the petitioner. It was alleged in that notice, that the petitioner had, with a fraudulent motive, resigned on 7th December 1982, without giving any reason, in order to escape from his responsibility and that the petitioner had not handover all the records relating to the school pondent. It was alleged that a sum of Rs. 10,795 out of the Teachers Provident Fund was not handed over to the respondent. It was specifically stated that the resignation letter dated 7th December 1982 was accepted in the meeting of the school committee held on 12th December 1982 and that the same had been communicated to the concerned educational authorities.