SANTOSH KUMAR SHARMA Vs. STATE OF U.P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Sri Ashok Khare, learned Senior Counsel in support of this petition and the learned Standing Counsel for the State respondents.

(2.) The instant petition has been preferred by the petitioners seeking quashing of a Government Order dated 18 November 2011. A further challenge is laid to a communication of the Basic Education Officer of 20 December 2011. That communication principally takes note of the Government Order aforementioned and the considered decision of the State to withdraw the benefit of notional promotion as was accorded to untrained Assistant Teachers in terms of Government Order dated 7 October 2009. At the very outset, it becomes pertinent to note that the validity of the Government Order dated 18 November 2011 has already been upheld by a learned Judge of the Court while rendering judgment in Ravi Prakash Mishra and Others v. The State of U.P. and Others1 . However, in order to deal with the submissions which are addressed it becomes pertinent to note the following skeletal facts.

(3.) All the petitioners were appointed as Assistant Teachers on compassionate basis. Admittedly at the time when they were initially appointed they did not hold a Training Certificate as statutorily prescribed and specified as an essential qualification for appointment as an Assistant Teacher. Pursuant to the Government Order of 4 September 2000, the petitioners are also stated to have been granted the trained payscale. On 7 October 2009, the State Government passed an order providing that notwithstanding an untrained Assistant Teacher having failed to obtain the Training Certificate, he would upon completion of five years of satisfactory service be granted notional promotion. The aforesaid Government Order led to the petitioners being placed in terms thereof in the relevant seniority list notwithstanding the fact that they had not obtained the Training Certificate and had only been granted the trained pay scale. The Government subsequently and in terms of the order of 18 November 2011 proceeded to delete paragraph -2 as contained in the Government Order of 7 October 2009 and which had accorded the facility of notional promotion. While upholding the validity of that Government Order, the learned Judge in Ravi Prakash Mishra has held thus: