GIRIWAR PANDEY Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) - In all these writ applications the petitioners have prayed that the students of the petitioner -School may be permitted to take the examination for the Madhyama course, which is to be held in the year 1993, as per the programme published in Advertisement no.1/93, which is Annexure -4 in C. W. J. C. No.3358/93. In most of the writ petitions a prayer has been made that the students of the institution, though unrecognised, may be permitted to take the said examination. In some of the. writ applications it is prayed in addition that the matter regarding recognition of the institution may be decided by the State government, and the students of the institution should, in the meantime, be permitted to take the examination. In a few writ applications there are other prayers made, but we are not dealing with those aspects of the matter, and they shall be dealt with separately in those writ applications.

(2.) THE Governor of Bihar was pleased to promulgate an Ordinance known as the Sanskrit Education Board Second Ordinance, 1981 (Bihar ordinance No.73, 1981), which wand replaced by the Bihar Act 31 of 1982, namely, Bihar Sanskrit Education Board Act, 1981 Under the provisions of the Act a Board was established, namely, Bihar Sanskrit Education board. The aforesaid Board consists of Chairman, a Secretary and a managing Committee. The powers and functions of the Board have been enumerated in Sec.6 of the Act. One of the duties entrusted to the board is to advise the State Government on all matters relating to Sanskrit education upto Madhyama standard. Apart from that, subject to the provision of the Act, the regulations and rules made thereunder, the board has also been entrusted with the power to direct, supervise and control Sanskrit Education upto Madhyama standard in the State and shall have the following powers : (a) To grant recognition to Sanskrit Schools and Tols up to madhyama Standard, with the prior approval of the State government and within the number fixed by the State Government, in accordance with such rules as may be made in this behalf; (b) To withdraw recognition of recognised Sanskrit institutions in accordance with such rules made in this behajf ; (c) To maintain a register of recognised Sanskrit Schools and Tols ; (d) To provide by regulation the syllabi, the courses of studies and the books to be studied in recognised Sanskrit Schools and Tols for Examinations instituted by the Board up to Madhyama Standard ; (e) To undertake, if necessary, with the prior approval of the state Government, the preparation, publication, or sale of text -books and other books for use in Sanskrit Schools and Tols ; (f) To maintain and publish from time, to time list of books approved for use in Sanskrit Schools and Tols for examinations instituted by the board and to remove the name of any such book from any such list; (g) To institute and conduct different Sanskrit examinations up to madhyama standard jand such other examination as it may think fit and make regulations in this behalf; (h) To publish results of the examination instituted by the Board and to award certificates, prizes and scholarships in this behalf; (i) To provide by regulation the rates of remuneration to be paid to the paper -setters, moderators, tabulators, examiners, invigilators, Centre Superintendent, Supervisors and others employed in connection with the examination instituted by the board and the fees to be paid by candi ates for such examination ; (j) To grant permission to candidate to appear at an examination up to Madhyama Standard instituted by the Board and to refuse or withdraw such permission in accordance with such regulation as may be made in this behalf; (k) To administer the Sanskrit Education Fund ; (1) To institute and administer such provident funds as may be prescribed ; (m) To prepare regulations regarding service conditions of the employees of the Board ; (n) Subject to the rules made under this Act to constitute, and dissolve the Managing committee of the Sanskrit Schools and Tols ; (o) To perform such other functions as may be entrusted to it by the State Government under Sec.22 of the Act, the State Government has been authorised to make rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act. These rules are required to be notified. These rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely i - (a) The acquisition, possession and disposal of property by the Board, the condition of such acquisition, possession and disposals ; (b) The manner of the nomination of the members of the Board specified in Sec.4 ; (c) The composition, powers and functions of managing committees of Sanskrit Schools and Tols ; (d) The terms and conditions of appointments, the scale of pay and the rules of discipline and other conditions of service relating to the officers and servants of the Board ; (e) The form of Budget preparation of the Board ; (f) The manner in which all payments to and from the Bihar State Sanskrit Education Fund shall be made ; (g) The manner of re -appropriation under Sec.14 ; (h) The manner and form in which accounts of income and expenditure shall be kept; (1) The manner in which examination and audit of the accounts of the Board shall be made ; (j) The reports, returns and statements to be furnished by the Board and the form of such reports, returns and statements ; (k) The service conditions and appointments of the teachers and other staff of the recognised sanskrit Schools and Tols ; (1) The procedures and conditions of recognition of Sanskrit Schools; aad (m) Any other matter which is required to be prescribed by this Act. Sub -section (3) of Sec.22 of the Act further provides that all rules made under this Act shall be laid for not less than fourteen days before the State Legislature as soon as possible after they are made and, shall be subject to such modifications as the State Legislature may make during the session in which they are so laid.

(3.) IT is, therefore, apparent that the State Government has been empowered to frame rules providing the procedures and conditions of recognition of Sanskrit Schools. Similarly, the Board has been empowered to grant recognition to Sanskrit schools and Tols upto Madhyama standard with the prior approval of the State Government and within the number fixed by the State Government, in accordance with such rules as may be made in this behalf. Obviously, therefore, unless the rules are first framed by the State Government, it will not be possible for the Board to grant recognition to any Sanskrit school, as contemplated by the Act. The second requirement is that such recognition should be granted only after obtaining the prior approval of the State Government. For the conduct of examination as well as for imparting education in recognised Sanskrit schools and Tols it is imperative that the Board must first frame the regulations. It is only by regulation that the syllabi, the courses of studies and the books to be studied in recognised Sanskrit schools on tols for examinations can be provided. Similarly, the Board must provide by regulation the rates of remuneration to be paid to the paper -setters, moderators, tabulators etc. and others employed in connection with the examination conducted by the Board and the fees to be paid by the candidates for such examination. From a reading of Sections 6 and 22 of the Act it follows that education can be imparted in the subject of Sanskrit upto Madhyama standard in accordance with the regulations to be framed by the Board and the examinations have also to be conducted in the manner provided under the regulations. Such education must be imparted to any schools recognised under the Act, meaning thereby the schools recognised by the Board with the prior approval of the state Government in accordance with the rules which must be necessarily to be framed by the State Government under Sec.22 of the Act.