ANDHERI EDUCATION SOCIETY Vs. SMT.SHERLY PAUL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) . By this petition filed under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, the petitioners have prayed for a writ of certiorari or any other writ, order or direction in the nature of writ of certiorari for quashing and setting aside the judgment and order dated 16th October 2015 passed by the learned Presiding Officer, School Tribunal, Mumbai thereby allowing the appeal filed by the respondent no.1 under Section 9 of the Maharashtra Employees of Private Schools (Conditions of Service) Regulation Act, 1977 (for short "the said MEPS Act") and setting aside the order of termination dated 14th July 2014. By the said judgment and order, the petitioners are directed to reinstate the respondent no.1 in the petitioner no.2 school on her original post of Headmistress with continuity of service and back wages from the date of termination till date of reinstatement within three months from the date of the said order. Some of the relevant facts for the purpose of deciding this petition are as under : -

(2.) Prior to the date of appointment of the respondent no.1 as Headmistress in the petitioner no.2 school, she was serving on the post of Assistant Teacher in a recognised unaided school by name St.Dominic High School, Andheri. In pursuance to an advertisement issued by the petitioner no.2 school for the permanent vacant post of Headmaster, the respondent no.1 applied for the said post. The petitioners appointed the respondent no.1 as Headmistress in the petitioner no.2 school w.e.f. 1st October 2008. It is the case of the respondent no.1 that while in service she had been given appreciation letters for her satisfactory work in the school and was not issued even a single memo or show cause notice.

(3.) It is the case of the petitioners that from the academic year 2012 -13, the petitioners were in process of raising the fees for the school. During one of the meetings between the petitioners and the members of the Parents Teacher Association, some of the members of the said association became violent and verbally abused and physically manhandled some of the teachers of the petitioner no.2 - school. It is the case of the petitioners that petitioner no.1 Trust, vide its letter dated 28 th September 2011, asked the respondent no.1 to narrate what happened in the said meeting dated 26th September 2011. The respondent no.1 vide her reply dated 11th September 2012 gave evasive answers. It is the case of the petitioners that the academic year 2012 -13 concluded with the conclusion of term examination in the month of April 2013. In the middle of April 2013, the respondent no.1 circulated a notice in the school stating that re -test would be conducted for the students of standard IX who had failed to clear the final examination. It is the case of the petitioners that the said notice issued by the respondent no.1 was in violation of Secondary School Code, 1986 and such students were illegally promoted to standard X. On 27th April 2013, the petitioners sought explanation from the respondent no.1 for conducting such examination without prior permission. According to the petitioner, the respondent no.1 never clarified as to why she conducted such re -test and granted promotion to the students from standard IX to standard X despite several reminders.