NIHAR BISWAS Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The dispute involved in the present writ petitions, pertains to appointment to the post of primary school teachers in the districts of North 24 Parganas and Malda. The petitioners in W.P. No. 15128 of 2017 (in short, WP-I) and W.P No. 1686 of 2017 (in short, WP-II), participated in the recruitment process of 2009 conducted by the North 24 Parganas, District Primary School Council (in short, DPSC) in terms of the West Bengal Primary School Teachers Recruitment Rules, 2001 (in short, the 2001 Rules). The petitioners in W.P. No. 21997 of 2017 (in short, WPIII) and W.P No. 21533 of 2017 (in short, WP-IV), participated in the same recruitment process conducted by the Malda, DPSC. As identical legal and factual issues are involved in all the writ petitions, the same are taken up for hearing together.

(2.) Shorn of unnecessary details the facts are that in the year 2009, a recruitment process was initiated for filling up the posts of teacher in primary schools under several DPSCs across the State guided by the 2001 Rules. The petitioners applied for participation and as they fulfilled the eligibility criteria under the 2001 Rules, they were allowed to appear in the written examinations. By a Government Order dated 21st June, 2012 (in short, the said GO), the said written examinations were cancelled and the respective Councils were directed to conduct the written examinations de novo indicating that "no other candidates except those who were allowed to appear in the earlier recruitment examination conducted for the same purpose will be allowed to appear in the de novo examination". The said GO was, however, challenged in several writ petitions. Against the interim orders passed in the same, appeals were preferred in which an order was passed on 18th September, 2013 granting liberty to the Councils to conduct the de novo examinations. It was also observed that the Councils shall also be entitled to prepare the panel but the panel shall not be given effect to during the pendency of the writ petitions without leave of Court. Pursuant to the said order, the de novo examinations were held and the petitioners duly participated in the same. They emerged to be successful and were also called for interview, in which they appeared. Subsequently, they came to learn that the panels prepared have been sent to the Directorate by the respective Councils for approval. Vide memoranda dated 11th June, 2015 and 17th June, 2015, the Deputy Director of School Education provisionally approved the panels prepared by Malda DPSC and North 24 Parganas, DPSC respectively for one year with an observation that such approval shall abide by the result of the matters referred to in the said memoranda. Even thereafter the authorities did not take any step towards appointment of the empanelled candidates. The representations submitted were also not attended to. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioners preferred the present writ petitions. The WP-I and WP-II were disposed of by a common order dated 19th July, 2017 observing that "the life of a panel does not commence until its publication" and that "provisional approval of the panel by the memo dated 17th June, 2015 would not mean that the life of the panel started on 17th June, 2015". Since it was reported to His Lordship that the writ petitions referred to in the panel approving order of the Deputy Director were dismissed and there was no order restraining effect being given to the panel, the North 24 Parganas DPSC and its Chairman were directed to take necessary steps for issuing appointment letters to the empanelled candidates, in accordance with law. The WP-III and WP-IV were also disposed of by a common order dated 7th September, 2017, the contents whereof bear close resemblance to the order dated 19th July, 2017. Aggrieved by the said orders, appeals were preferred by the State, its functionaries and the Malda, DPSC. The Appeal Court by a judgment dated 12th October, 2018 decided to remand the said writ petitions upon setting aside the orders impugned. Challenging the judgment dated 12th October, 2018, the writ petitioners in WP-I preferred a Special Leave Petition. The same was disposed of by a judgment dated 22nd July, 2019 remitting the matter to this Court with a direction to decide the same within the contour of the limited defence raised by the State in its counter affidavit. The State thereafter preferred an application for modification/clarification of the order dated 22nd July, 2019 but the same was also dismissed. Though no appeal has been preferred by the petitioners in the district of Malda against the judgment dated 12th October, 2018, their claim would also be governed by the order passed in the Special Leave Petition.

(3.) Mr. Gupta, learned senior advocate appearing for the petitioners in W.P. No. 15128 (W) of 2017 submits that in view of serious irregularities in the recruitment examinations, the same were cancelled vide Government Order dated 21st June, 2012, with a direction upon the Chairmen of the DPSCs to conduct the recruitment examinations de novo. The petitioners participated in the de novo examinations and interview. Panels for different categories were prepared and sent by the respective Councils to the Directorate of School Education but the said panels were never published. Claiming publication of panel and appointment, the petitioners approached the authorities repeatedly but in vain. Ultimately the petitioners obtained copies of memoranda dated 11th June, 2015/17th June, 2015 issued by Deputy Director of Education. By the said memoranda the panels prepared pursuant to the recruitment process of 2009 were provisionally approved for a period of one year and it was also indicated that such approval shall abide by the pending writ proceedings referred to in the same. The word "provisional" has been defined in Black's Law dictionary (8th edition) as "temporary, conditional". It is only after the pending Court cases, as referred to in the said memoranda, were finally decided by orders dated 17th May, 2017 and 23rd June, 2017, life stood infused in the panels and the present writ petitions have been preferred within a period of one year from the dates of disposal of the pending proceedings.