KIRTI CHANDRA PHUKAN Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AS agreed to by the learned counsel for the parties these two writ petitions involving the same parties are taken up together for decision. A common question of law is involved in both the writ petitions and the reliefs sought for are consequential to one another.

(2.) IN W.P. (C) No. 8204/2002, the petitioner has made a challenge to Annexure - VI order dated 29 -8 -2002 by which the respondent No. 4 was nominated as the Secretary of the Governing Body of Sadiya College for a period of six months. It is the case of the petitioner that he is the founder principal of Sadiya College and by virtue of operation of the relevant rules he became the ex -officio Secretary of the Governing Body of the College. By an order dated 30.1.2002, the Governing Body of the College was constituted for a period of three years and the senior most Lecturer of the College was made the ex -officio Secretary in place of the Principal. Being aggrieved, the petitioner approached this court filing W.P. (C) No. 638/2002. This Court disposed of the writ petition by its order dated 9.8.2002 holding the appointment of the respondent No. 3 therein namely Shri Haragobinda Barkakoty as ex -officio Secretary illegal and directed the State respondent not to allow him to act as the ex -officio Secretary of the Governing Body of the College. Liberty was granted to the State -respondent to allow the writ petitioner to act as the ex -officio Secretary in the capacity of Principal of the College.

(3.) MRS . Dutta Chowdhury, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner argued on two counts namely that inspite of the fact that the impugned order has. already spent its force, the respondent No. 4 is still functioning as Secretary of the Governing Body. Secondly it is her submission that the pre -condition towards substituting the regular Principal of the College to act as the Secretary of the Governing Body by way of appointing the respondent No. 4 as the Secretary are not fulfilled. In this connection Mrs. Chowdhury has referred to a Division Bench judgment of this Court as reported in (1987) 2 GLR 286 (Shri Dugha Nath Sarma v. Smt. Sarada Bezbarua and Ors.), In that case also the Vice Principal of the college in question was appointed as Secretary (Ex -Officio) to the replacement of the Principal of the College. Referring to Rule 22 Assam Aided College Management Rules, 1976 the Division Bench held that the pre -condition for nominating the Vice Principal as ex -officio Secretary was absent and thus was violative of Rule 22 of the said rules.