RAMSWARUP SINGH Vs. SUB DIVISIONAL OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners have moved this Court for a writ of mandamus, or any other appropriate writ or order, challenging the nomination of opposite party Nos. 1 to 4 to the Managing Committee of the Arwal High English School as also for the cancellation of the instructions of the S.D.E.O. (Subdivisional Education Officer), Jahanabad, opposite party No. 8, regarding the proposed election of the guardians' representative to be held in pursuance of the order Annexure D. The petitioners claim to be guardians of certain students of the Arwal High English School The school was managed according to the provisions contained in the instructions and resolutions published in the Bihar Gazette Extraordinary dated the 23rd March, 1959, which had statutory force under the provisions of Section 8(2) of the Bihar High Schools (Control and Regulation of Administration) Act, 1960 (Bihar Act XIII of 1960). It has been alleged further that until rules would be framed by the respondent State of Bihar in exercise of its legislative powers, the provisions of the Bihar Education Code (7th edition) and the instructions and resolutions referred to above were deemed to be statutory rules made under the said Act and were treated to be part of the statute by referential incorporation.

(2.) The petitioners have also stated that opposite party No. 4 Haridwar Singh had a hostile attitude towards the Managing Committee of the school, the headmaster, some members of the teaching staff and the students in general. He was witness for one Dineshwar in a criminal case which ended in his conviction and he was also proceeded against under Section 107, Code of Criminal Procedure. He manoeuvred to get himself nominated to the Managing Committee and against his nomination several telegrams were addressed to the higher authorities such as the Chief Minister of Bihar, the Education Minister of Bihar and the Director of Public Instruction, Bihar (marked A, A/1 and A/2 for identification). On the 1st of July, 1962, the Director of Public Instruction, Bihar, ordered the circulation of a cyclostyled copy of Resolution No. 17714, dated the 28th September, 1954, and Resolution No. 124, dated the 10th January, 1957, the effect of which was to alter and vary the resolutions of 1954 and 1957. This was by virtue of a resolution which was contained in the forwarding letter which has been appended to the petition (Annexure B). A perusal of Annexure B showed a wide departure in the matter of nomination of the members of the Managing Committee from that contained in the resolutions of 1954 and 1957 under which the Managing Committees were constituted.

(3.) On the 21st of August 1963, the Director of Public Instruction, Bihaiy forwarded to the Sub-divisional Education Officer, Jahanabad, names of the new members of the Managing Committee of the School which was reconstituted in pursuance of the resolutions contained in Annexure B, who are opposite party Nos. 1 to 4, namely, the Subdivisional Officer, Jahanabad, the Deputy Inspector of Schools. Jahanabad, Shri Shah Mohammad Umair of village Makhdumpur Kabir and Shri Haridwar Singh of village Bakhtari. The reconstituted Managing Committee was to elect a guardians' representative and notice was issued to that effect fixing the 5th of Septembers 1963, as the date of election The petitioners claim to be the prospective candidates and made a grievance that their interests would be highly prejudiced by the nomination of the aforesaid persons, inasmuch as members were introduced into the Managing Committee on political and other extraneous considerations. Particular emphasis, however, has been laid against the nomination of Haridwar Singh as a person who should not have been introduced into the Managing Committee, as also against Shah Md. Umair, inasmuch as he started a rival high school at a distance of less than a mile from the Arwal High English School, which was in violation of the standing instructions of the Education Code. This step on his part brought in unhealthy rivalry between the two institutions and caused irreparable injury to the interest of the Arwal High English School. The nomination of opposite party No. 4 was challenged as mala fide and in violation of the instructions regarding nomination of members to the Managing Committee contained in the paper marked E for identification