RAJENDER PRASAD SINHA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present application has been filed on behalf of the petitioners for quashing the order passed by the Director (Directorate of Education), Department of Human Resources and Development, Bihar, which was communicated to petitioner no. 1 under memo no. 28 dated 9th June, 1989 and has been filed as Annexure-4 to the writ application. By this order, the Director of Primary Education has rejected the application filed on behalf of the petitioners for taking over of their school under the provisions of Bihar Non-Government Elementary Schools (Taking over of Control) Act, 1976 (herein after to be referred to as 'the Act').

(2.) In the present application, there are altogether 15 petitioners and they claim to be Headmaster and Assistant teachers of the School "Adarsha Shiksha Niketan" located at Karbigahiya in the town of Patna. It is asserted in the writ application that the school in question was established on 1-1-1968 and was granted recognition by the State Govt. from 1-1-1970 by its memo No. 199 dated 16-4-1970. It seems that the Parliamentary Secretary Mr. Chandra Shekhar Jha had inspected seven schools including that of the petitioners in the year 1979 and had recommended to the concerned authorities for taking over of this school. The further case of the petitioners is that the Managing Committee passed a resolution dated 14-12-1979 to hand over the assets of the school to the State Government unconditionally and voluntarily. In paragraph 10 of the writ application, it has been asserted that the District Committee under its memo No. 1300 dated 3rd March, 1982, which is Annexure-2 to the writ application, had recommended for taking over of large number of primary schools including the school of the petitioners but in spite of this recommendation the present school was not taken over by the Government though some other schools like Bhartiya Madhaya Vidhalaya, Lohiyanagar and Sishu Siksha Niketan, Nala Road, Patna, has been taken over. In paragraph no. 12 of the writ application names of some more schools have been given which are claimed to have been taken over pursuant to some directions issued by this Court in certain writ applications preferred on behalf of those schools. It is further stated that on 8-5-1984, the then Deputy Director of Education inspected this school and mentioned on the inspection book that the school is fit to be nationalised but in spite of all that have been stated above, the school was not taken over by the Government. Therefore, the petitioners were compelled to file a writ application in this Court being C.W.J.C. No, 3728 of 1986 which was disposed of on 28-8-1986 by a Bench of this Court with the observation that the claim of the petitioners with regard to the taking over of their school should be considered and disposed of in accordance with law within six months from the date of receipt of that order. It seems that pursuant to this order of this Court, the impugned order (Annexure-4) has been passed by the Director of Primary Education after taking into account the facts and materials made available to him.

(3.) The claim of the petitioners for taking over of the school has been rejected by the impugned order both on factual as well as legal grounds. It transpites from the impugned order that after due notice to the concerned parties and giving opportunity of personal hearing as also after perusal of the relevant documents, it was inter alia, found that the school is being run in a rented premises and most of the teachers are untrained. No document was filed to show that the school has any fund. Apart from these factual aspects respondent no. 2 has also held that under the scheme of the Act, there is no provision for taking over of the schools like that of the petitioners.