SANTWANA KUMARI Vs. DISTRICT INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS GHAZIPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) O. P. Garg, J. In this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, which has come in the wake of following facts, it is prayed that by means of a writ of certiorari, the order dated 13-9-1994, passed by District Inspector of Schools (for short 'digs') Ghazipur, respondent No. 1, be quashed.

(2.) ONE Smt. Girja Devi, who was employed as an Assistant Teacher in Kanya Junior High School, in village Mainpuri, Pargana Karanda, District Ghazipur died in harness on 13-7-1993 leaving behind her two daughters, namely, Smt. Ranjana Pandey and the petitioner Smt. Santwana Kumari. Smt, Ranjana Pandey is already employed as a teacher in Agrasen Inter College, Varanasi. Smt. Santwana Kumari, the petitioner, who has passed High School in first division in 1985 and Intermediate examination in 1987, applied for appointment as the de pendent of the deceased employee on compassionate grounds. The petitioner, who is a married woman, claimed that since she has been -divorced by her hus band, she was dependent on her mother and being a divorced daughter, is entitled to be considered for appointment as the dependent of her deceased mother. The request of the petitioner for appointment was not favourably considered. Conse quently, she filed a writ petition, being Civil Misc. Writ No. 21558 of 1994, in which a direction was issued that the com petent authority shall consider and take decision on the representation of the petitioner. The Basic Shiksha Adhikari wroto to Basic Shiksha Parishad recom mending the case of the petitioner for ap pointment in place of her mother on com passionate ground but the request was turned down primarily on the a ground that the petitioner, who is 'divorced woman' does not fall within the category of 'dependent', as contemplated by the departmental orders. By the impugned order dated 13-9-1994, the petitioner was informed that she cannot be appointed as a teacher as she does not fall in the category of dependents of her deceased mother, undisputediy, unemployed son, unmarried daughter, wife or husband, as the case may be, have been described as dependents of the deceased employee. On a subsequent clarification, the 'widowed daughter' has also been included in the category of dependents. The case of the petitioner is that since unmarried daughters and widowed daughter have been treated as dependents, there is no justification for not including a divorced daughter within the definition of the ex pression 'dependent'.

(3.) THE only submission made on be half of the respondents is that since under the departmental orders, a divorced daughter does not find a place in the list of dependents of the deceased employee, the case of the petitioner for appointment merely by reason of the death of her mother cannot be taken into considera tion.