COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT SRI MATH INTER COLLEGE,GARHMALPUR SAHULAL,BALLLA AND ANOTHER Vs. JOINT DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION,VI REGION,VARANASI AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE writ petition is directed against the order dated 28-7-1995 passed by the Joint Director of Education, Vth Region, Varanasi under Section 16-A (7j of U.P. Intermediate Education Act, 1921. The Joint Director of Education assumed jurisdiction in pursuance of the High Court's order dated 19-10-1994 issued in writ petition No. 33582 of 1994. The said writ petition was directed against the order dated 12-10-1994 of the City Magistrate acting as District inspector of Schools attesting signatures of respondent Phool Deo Pandey as manager of one of the rival committees of management staking their claims for recognition before the District Inspector of Schools and since the District Inspector of Schools had no jurisdiction to decide the dispute between the rival committees of management, this Court, by order dated 19-10-1994, stayed the operation of the order dated 12-10-1994 with an observation that the parties may approach the Regional Deputy Director of Education for settlement of the dispute in accordance with Section 16-A (7; of the Act. Both the parties appeared before the Joint Director of Education, filed their written state­ments and were heard on 22-2-1995. One of the objections raised on behalf of the petitioners to the validity of the constitution of the committee of management of which 4th respondent-Phool Deo Pandey claims himself to have been elected as manager, was that the election was vitiated due to participation of 9 (nine) persons invalidly enrolled as members. It appears that no evidence was adduced in presence of the petitioners in support of membership of the 9 persons at least till 22-2-1995 when the matter was heard by the Joint Director of Education. After the hearing was concluded and the orders reserved, the Joint Director of Education appears to have issued notice dated 7-4-1995, a copy of which has been annexed as A.nn-exure-21 to the writ petition. It may be pertinent to state here that the notice was issued under the signature of Sri Amrit Prakash the then Deputy Director of Education, Vth Region, Varanasi, but later on his designation was changed as Joint Director of Education. By means of notice dated 7-4-1995 the parties were required to produce relevant receipts, counterfoil etc. regarding enrolment of 9 persons whose membership was disputed by the petitioners. But the notice did not indicate any date on which the parties were to appear before the Regional Deputy Director of Education. Since the petitioners were disputing the membership of the nine (9) persons, there was no question of filing any document by them in respect of the membership. The documents, if any, were to be filed and produced on behalf of respondent No. 4, the rival claimant. It appears that 4th respondent showed certain papers to the Joint Director behind the back of the petitioners regarding enrolment of the nine persons whose member­ship was disputed by the petitioners. The Regional Joint Director of Education, however, passed order on 28-7-1995 and thereby rejected the claim of the petitioners and maintained the order passed by the District Inspector of Schools according recognition to the committee of management of which 4th respondent claims himself to be the manager until a contrary decision is taken by the Court. It is the order dated 28-7-1995 which is the subject matter of impugnment in this writ petition.

(2.) SRI A. P. Sahi vehementally urged that the impugned order has been issued m utter disregard of the Rules of natural justice in that the papers relied on by the Regional Joint Director of Education in support of the membership of nine persons whose membership was disputed by the peti­tioners were shown to the Joint Director of Education behind the back of the petitioners and they were never afforded any opportunity of hearing after 22-2-1995. Sri Upendra Misra, learned counsel appearing for the 4th respondent tried to refute the contention of Sri Sahi on the premises that the hearing was already given to the petitioners on 22-2-1995 and no fresh hearing was required to be given.

(3.) IN view of the above discussion the writ petition succeeds and is allowed with cost. The impugned order dated 28-7-1995 is quashed. Regional Deputy Director of Education, Vth Region, Varanasi is directed to decide the dispute afresh in accordance with law and in the light of the observations made in the judgment. Petition allowed.