ANIL PANJABRAO NAHATE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard learned Counsel for the parties.

(2.) The parents of the students, who were studying in Standard VIII and IX in the School at Jalgaon Nahate, Tahsil Akot, District Akola run by respondent No. 4-Yashoda Bahu Uddeshiya Shikshan Prasarak Mandal (for short, "the Management") have challenged the communication/order dated 13/ 10/2008 issued by respondent No. 2-Deputy Director of Education, Amravati Division, Amravati whereby the decision to shift the School at Jalgaon Nahate to Akot, District Akola has been maintained/confirmed by the State Government.

(3.) Respondent No. 4-Management in 2001 had made an application/proposal in the prescribed form for starting a Secondary School at village-Jalgaon Nahate. Since the village Jalgaon Nahate was included in the Master plan, the State Government, after following the due procedure, allowed the proposal submitted by the respondent Management. The respondent Management accordingly opened the School at Jalgaon Nahate in the academic session 2002-03 and since then, till it was shifted to Akot in the academic session 2008-09, were running it at Jalgaon Nahate. According to the petitioners, the respondent Management, behind the back of the villagers, submitted a proposal for shifting their School from Jalgaon Nahate to Akot on the ground that in future, they would not get sufficient number of students in the School if it is not shifted. The proposal was processed and ultimately the State Government granted permission for shifting the School as prayed vide order dated 17/10/ 2007. By the time this order was communicated to the Management, students in the 8th Standard for the academic session 2008-09 were admitted in the school at Jalgaon Nahate itself. On 29/7/2008, i.e. after commencement of the academic session 2008-09, the Management shifted their School to Akot without giving any intimation either to the students or their parents from Jalgaon Nahate. It appears that the petitioners and other villagers came to know about the order allowing the respondent Management to shift the School only when they actually started the process of shifting the School to Akot. There is no dispute that when the School was shifted, it had more than hundred students, who were residents of the villages Jalgaon Nahate and Wadai Satwai.