STATE OF WEST BENGAL Vs. MRINAL KANTI KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The instant case has a chequered history and the litigation pertaining to recognition and/or upgradation of the school and absorption and/or regularization of the teachers appointed by the managing committee are being pursued before this Court for more than two decades. The last writ petition which is decided in the impugned order is allowed by the Single Bench directing the approval of the appointment of the writ petitioners/respondent as teaching and non-teaching staff of the school from the date of upgradation of the school with consequential relief of release of arrears and current service benefit to be extended to them. The State has challenged the said order taking clue from the various judgments of the Co-ordinate Bench as well as the Apex Court which, in their opinion, have decided the issues involved in the writ petition and impugned order runs contrary thereto.

(2.) The writ petition being WP 12615(W) of 2014 was filed by the writ petitioners/respondent assailing the order dtd. 12/5/2011 by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education and an order dtd. 7/2/2014 by the Commissioner of School Education whereby and whereunder the prayer for approving the appointment of the writ petitioner/respondent as teaching and non- teaching staff of the said school was denied. The facts discerned from the record would reveal that one Harin Khola D.A. High School was established by the then reputed persons with an avowed object of imparting education to the local inhabitants and was granted recognition as far back as on 1/1/1965 as Class-IV high school. The District Inspector of School (SE South-24 Parganas) inspected the school on 18/9/1965 and observed that the said school being an old institution should be upgraded to high school.

(3.) Several representations were made as the competent authority did not grant approval for upgradation of the school for Class-IX and X and the inaction on the part of the authorities led several writ petitions to be filed before this Court. The Secretary and the Teacher-in-Charge of the said school filed writ petition being WP 3061(w) of 1997 for alleged refusal of the authority to upgrade the said school and also denial of granting approval to the appointment of 6 organizing teachers and 4 non-teaching staff in the said school. The writ petition was also disposed of on 3/8/1997 and a direction was passed upon DI to inspect the said school through District Level Investigation Team and the report so submitted should be forwarded to the DI of school who was further obligated to make his comments and forward the same to the Director of School Education (West Bengal). The corresponding obligation of the Director of School Education was further indicated in the said order that all relevant papers shall be forwarded to the Education Department and upon taking a decision, the matter should be placed before the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education to take a decision strictly in accordance with law. Pursuant to the said order, the decision was taken by the authority on 15/9/1999 thereby rejecting the prayer for grant of approval pertaining to the upgradation of school which was challenged by the school authority in WP no. 594(W) of 2000. The said writ petition was disposed of on 10/7/2000. The Court found that certain steps are required to be undertaken by the school authorities as pointed out in the decision of the authority and the liberty was given to the school authority to apply a fresh after such steps have been taken and the concerned authority was further directed to consider the same afresh in accordance with the relevant provision of law. Pursuant to the said order further application was made by the school authorities which was rejected by the WBBSE on April 16, 2001 meaning thereby the prayer for upgradation to the school for Class X level was denied. The said order was further assailed in WP 11197(W) of 2001 which came to be disposed on 25/4/2005 wherein the Court noticed that the school which was established sometimes in 1952 initially recognized by the authority as Second Class junior high School was subsequently upgraded to Four Class junior high school. It was further noticed in the said order that the school claims to have started classes IX and X in early part of the 70s but the District Level Inspecting Team did not submit any report in support thereof but indicated certain infrastructure deficiencies and the existence of the other high schools within the radius of 9 kilometers. It was further observed that unless the school posses requisite infrastructure for running Class IX and X, it cannot seek upgradation. It was observed that if the school removes the deficiencies with regard to the infrastructure then the request for upgradation may be considered both by the Government and the Board. The Court ultimately held that the technical objection that there are other high schools within the radius of 5 or 9 kilometers is not accepted in view of the need for upliftment of the childrens and the socio-economic disparity prevalent in the locality where the school is located and directed the authorities to reconsider the claim of the school afresh.