MANAGING COMMITTEE Vs. EDUCATION TRIBUNAL, PUNJAB, CHANDIGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present writ petition has been filed, inter alia, for issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari to quash judgment dtd. 9/8/2011 (Annexure P-10) passed by Education Tribunal, Punjab. Whereby, the termination of services of the petitioner from the post of Senior Laboratory Attendant (Physics) was set aside and the respondent No.3 was reinstated in service w.e.f. the date of his termination with all consequential benefits.

(2.) Succinctly, the factual backdrop of the case, as pleaded by respondent No.3, in his petition Annexure P-8 before the Tribunal as also in the reply to this petition is that at the relevant time, he was working as Lab Assistant with the petitioner college and the said post iswas aided post because the college was receiving 95% grant-in-aid from State of Punjab. The grant-in-aid from the State of Punjab is an irrefragable position as borne out from the proceeding book dtd. 26/11/2001 and 10/7/2004 of the college and in the letter dtd. 14/8/2007 addressed to DPI by the college, as has been noted by the learned Tribunal in the impugned order. The respondent No.3 was originally appointed on the basis of an interview held on 16/9/2001 on the post of Senior Laboratory Attendant (SLA) vide appointment letter dtd. 26/9/2001 (Annexure P-2). In the said appointment letter, it was stated that the appointment will depend upon approval to be granted by the DPI (Colleges), Government of Punjab- respondent No.2. However, after the respondent No.3 had put in 9 years of continuous service with unblemished record, vide termination orderletter dtd. 4/12/2010 (Annexure P-6), his services were wrongly dispensed with, on the ground that approval of appointment and 95% grant of losses has not been received from the DPI (Colleges), Government of Punjab.

(3.) In the reply filed by respondent No.3 to the writ petition, preliminary objection has been taken that his services could not have been terminated by the petitioner college without following the provisions contained in Ss. 3 to 5 of the Punjab Affiliated Colleges (Security of Services of Employees) Act, 1974. It would be instructive to reproduce the relevant Ss. thereof for better appreciation-3. Dismissal, removal or reduction in rank not to be ordered except after inquiry No employee shall be dismissed or removed or reduced in rank except after enquiry in which he has been informed of the charges against him and given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in respect of those charges.