(1.) These three Revisional applications under Art. 227 of the Constitution involving common questions of law and fact were heard together and now are being disposed of by this single judgment.
(2.) All these three applications have been filed by the Administrator, Keshrambha Vidyasagar Vidya Bhawan of Midnapur district (hereinafter referred to as the petitioner). The relevant facts leading to the filing of these applications may be summarised as follows. The said Vidya Bhawan was a junior High School w.e.f. 1.1.1968 and subsequently it was upgraded as X- class High School for three years w.e.f. 1.1.1984 to 1987. Due to disputes amongst the members of the Managing Committee with regard to the management of the school, the Board of Secondary Education, West Bengal appointed in 1985 an Administrator. The present petitioner was appointed as a Administrator of the school by an order dated 16.3.1999. The petitioner's case is that the O.P. Sri Motilal Das Mahapatra was appointed as Headmaster of the school on and from 1st Jan., 1968 and continued to function in this capacity till 2nd Sept., 1985. On 5th Sept., 1985 the school was proposed to be shifted from Keshrambha to Kakrajit by the said Headmaster and the other two O.Ps, namely Sint. Sikha Mohanty and Sri Santosh Kr. Maity in connivance with the then Administrator of the School who was also the acting Sub-Inspector of Schools, Secondary Education, Danton circe at that time. But his illegal attempt at shifting the venue of the school by the O.Ps. was finally disapproved by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education and the said OPs., that is, the Headmaster and the other two teachers named above moved against that order before this High Court in its writ jurisdiction and a Single Bench of this Court by an order dated 3rd Dec., 1985 directed the Board to look into the matter and to decide the issue of alleged shifting of the school to the proposed site. Accordingly on 10th January, 1986 the Secretary of the Board heard the matter in presence of all the parties and held that the proposed shifting of a portion of the school from Keshrambha to Kakrajit without obtaining prior permission of the authority by the O.Ps. was illegal and in pursuance of the direction of a Single Bench of this High Court dated 3.12.1985 directed the O.Ps. and others concerned to report immediately for joining the school at its original site at Keshrambha. The then Administrator of the school in view of such order of the Board requested those teachers by his letters dated 20.1.86, 22.1.86, 5.2.86 and 25.2.1987 to handover the keys of the almirah of the school. But the said three teachers including the Headmaster did not comply with the order of the Board or the Administrator and neither they joined the school nor handover to the authority the keys of the almirahs. The Administrator after waiting for a long time issued a show-cause notice dated 28th Oct., 1987 to the said three teachers (O.P. No. 2 of each of the revision petitions) directing them to explain their unauthorised absence within ten days from that date. But they did not comply with this order also and did not make any attempt to join the school on the false plea that they had been prevented by the local anti-social emements from entering into the school. Thereafter they moved three writ petitions before this High Court and a Single Bench of this Court passed an order dated 25th Aug., 1995 directing the President of the Board of Secondary Education to consider the representations of the said three writ petitioners after giving the an opportunity of being heard and to pass a reasoned order. In terms of this direction the president of the Board gave a personal hearing to the parties on 17th Nov., 1995 and passed a reasoned order thereby disposing of the representations of the three teachers and rejecting their prayers for resumption of duties in the school on the ground that they did not move the Board or Appeal Committee during such a long period of their absence. But against that order of the President of the Board dated 18th Nov., 1995 the three teachers moved the High Court against in its writ jurisdiction. In the meantime the District Inspector of Schools, Midnapur by his Memo No. 1134-S dated 28th March, 1996 accorded permission for filing up the vacant posts of teachers of this school after observing the rules and regulations regarding 50 point roster. As a result, the vacancy of Santosh Kr. Maity was treated as second vacancy (unreserved) and the vacancy of Sikha Mohanty stood against the third vacancy (Unreserved) and the vacancy of Motilal Das was treated as fourth vacancy being reserved for Scheduled Tribe candidates. Two of the three vacancies were actually filled up by means of appointments being given to different candidates after following the rules. The vacancy in the post of Headmaster however has not yet been filled up due to non-availability of eligible Scheduled Tribe candidate.
(3.) In the aforementioned writ petitions this Court has passed an interim order to the effect that all' steps taken including the appointments given during the pendency of the writ petitions would be subject to the result of the writ petitions. On 12th March, 1999 those writ petitions were disposed of by a Single Bench of this Court directing that the writ petitioners would be entitled to join the school with back wages and consequential benefits in accordance with law.