KALI KINKAR CHATTERJEE Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appeal is filed against the dismissal order passed by a learned single Judge of this Court dismissing the writ petition filed by the original writ petitioner, one Kali Kinkar Chatterjee. In that writ petition the writ petitioner had sought to quash the order dated 25th April, 2000 whereby the O.S.D. and Ex-officio Deputy Secretary had directed that there would be no pay protection to the petitioner, who had come from the non-Government unaided school to the Government aided school, since there was no provision for such pay protection.

(2.) A brief history would be necessary to understand the controversy. The petitioner Kali Kinkar Chatterjee joined a school called "Bagha Jatin School" which was a recognised and Government aided institution, as a teacher on 19th August, 1966. He continued in that school for twenty-three years when he applied for the post of Headmaster which had fallen vacant in a school called "A. K Ghosh Memorial School" which was a recognized but unaided school. This was a permissible exercise and accordingly the petitioner left the aided school and joined the unaided school as a headmaster. While fixing his salary, the unaided school fixed his salary at the minimum pay of Rs. 940, this was also in keeping with the rules. At the time when he joined the A.K. Ghosh Memorial School, his initial salary was Rs. 820/- as he had reached almost the height of his scale of pay due to his long years of service of twenty-three years. However, when he was selected as a headmaster his initial pay was to be treated as Rs. 940/-. He continued to be in A. K. Ghosh Memorial School as a headmaster and this was with the full approval of the authorities. The department then obviously knew the fixation of pay of the petitioner at the minimum of Rs. 940. However, in the year 1996 the post of Headmaster of Bagha Jatin High School fell vacant. He accordingly applied for that post and was selected also. He was duly given his salary which he was getting as a Headmaster of A. K. Ghosh Memorial School and ultimately he retired from that school on 31st October, 2001. There has been a revision of pay scales of the Assistant Teachers and the Headmaster. The relevant revised scale was with effect from 1st January, 1996. At the time when his salary was fixed in A.K.Ghosh Memorial School he was given the pay scale of Rs. 2200-80-3000-100-4000 with higher initial start at Rs.940/-. At that time his unrevised scale was Rs. 550-25-625-30-745-35-780-40-1220-50-1470. However, in this scale he was drawing at the basic pay of Rs. 820 because of his twenty-three years of service. In his case this scale abandoned and he was provided with revised scale which we have given earlier. At the time when he left A. K. Ghosh Memorial School, his monthly basic pay was Rs. 3200/- as per the revised pay scales. The petitioner on 14th August, 1996 sent a letter to the school after he took the post of a Headmaster of Bagha Jatin High School for the approval and also requested for the fixation of the petitioner's pay. However, that pay was not fixed by the authorities. The school authorities of Jadavpur Bagha Jatin High School sent a further letter dated 4th February, 1997 again requesting the fifth respondent for fixation of the petitioner's pay, but that was also of no avail. Ultimately the Jadavpur Bagha Jatin High School sent a third letter dated 7th August, 1998 but no reply was given to that letter also. It was in April, 1999 the District Inspector of Schools, Secondary Education, the fifth respondent vide Memo dated 12th April, 1999 forwarded a copy of the service book of the petitioner to the Director of School Education, the fourth respondent for fixation of pay. This matter was referred to the Secretary, Department of School Education, Government of West Bengal for necessary action for fixing the petitioner's pay and ultimately the Officer on special duty and Ex-officio Deputy Secretary under instruction from the concerned Ministry issued a Memo No. E (S)/5P-25/2000 dated 25th April, 2000 intimated that since there was no provision for pay protection, the proposal for fixation of salary after the pay protection was being rejected. The petitioner came to this Court and challenged the said action on the part or the Government on various grounds.

(3.) The learned Judge has, however, rejected the writ petition solely on the ground that there was no provision for pay protection and that the petitioner could not insist on the pay protection. Thus in the result the petitioner's basic pay was not fixed treating it to be Rs. 3200/- in the scale of pay of Rs. 2200-80-3000-100-4000 and it is directed to be fixed at the minimum of the Headmaster's pay scale, which is much lower than the petitioner's pay which he earned while he was a headmaster at A.K. Ghosh Memorial School. We are told that ultimately the scale of the Headmaster is now revised with effect from 1st January, 1996 at Rs. 8000-275-13500.