BRIJ RAJ DWIVEDI Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Sri Ashok Kumar Dwivedi for the petitioner. The grievance of the petitioner is that he was allowed to discharge duties of Principal after attesting his signature by the District Inspector of schools on officiating basis on 3.7.2003 but has not been paid salary payable on the post of Principal and instead he has continuously been paid salary of the post he holds on substantive basis which is illegal, arbitrary and violative of principle of 'equal pay for equal work'. He placed reliance on the Apex Court decision in Selva Raj v. Lt. Governor of Island, Port Blair, 1999 AIR(SC) 838 and a single Judge decision of this Court in Writ Petition No. 64399 of 2009 (Bhagwat Prasad Pandey v. State of U.P. & others) decided on 27.11.2009.

(2.) However, I find no force in submission. From the record, it is evident that the post of Principal in Sanskrit Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Sonaha, District Basti (hereinafter referred to as "College") fell vacant on 15.3.2002 as a result whereof the petitioner was allowed to look after the duties of the Principal as officiating Principal and his signature was attested by the Deputy Inspector (Sanskrit Pathshala), Gorakhpur Mandal, Gorakhpur by letter dated 3.7.2002. No letter of appointment of the petitioner appointing him even as officiating Principal has been placed on record. Learned counsel for the petitioner, even otherwise, could not show any provision under which the Management could have appointed the petitioner on officiating basis as Principal of the College. Whether a person, who is allowed to look after the duties of the higher post can be treated to be a person appointed on the post in order to claim salary is a question considered by a Division Bench of this Court in Smt. Vijay Rani v. Regional Inspectress of Girls Schools Region-I, Meerut & others, 2007 2 ESC 987 and this Court observed as under:

(3.) Besides above, there is another aspect of the matter. The petitioner was working in a Sanskrit College. After the enforcement of U.P. Board of Secondary Sanskrit Education Act, 2000 (hereinafter referred to as "2000 Act"), the institutions imparting Sanskrit education upto Uttar Madhyama are governed by the provisions of the said Act. Section 25 of 2000 Act provides procedure for appointment of Head of the institution, teachers and other employees and reads as under: