RABIN TUDU Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The slew of litigations which are assigned to this Bench relate to the Constitutional validity of the provisions contained under Sec. 10C of the West Bengal School Service Commission Act, 1997 (said Act) at the behest of the teachers appointed in a different aided school within the State assailing the order of transfer or placement of service from one school to another school. Taking aid of Sec. 10C of the said Act, the School Service Commission recommended the transfer of a teacher from a school to another school on the basis of the general or special order passed by the State Government necessitated in the interest of the education and/or in the interest of Public Service but till date the recommendation has not fructified into an order of transfer or placement of service to another school. Since the constitutional validity of Sec. 10C of the said Act is assailed in all the aforesaid matters, the assignment was made to the Division Bench to decide the aforesaid issue.

(2.) All the counsels representing the respective writ petitioners have categorized their arguments in two compartments firstly, by introduction of Sec. 10C of the Act, the legislatures have impinged upon the condition of service which has been protected under Sec. 10 of the said Act; secondly, the introduction of Sec. 10C into the said Act by way of an amending Act cannot apply retrospectively as it has a larger impact on varying the condition of service to their disadvantages.

(3.) Since the second question is intricately related to the first question, we decided to permit the respective counsels to argue the said point and for the larger interest of the teachers within the State of West Bengal, proceeded to decide the aforesaid point as well in the event the first question is answered in favour of the writ petitioners.