UMESH KUMAR SHARMA Vs. THE STATE OF JHARKHAND THROUGH ITS PRINCIPAL SECTARY, HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, GOVT. OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petition has preferred mainly for the reason that the petitioner is appointed as an Assistant Teacher in Project Girls High School, Barkattha, District Hazaribagh. Thereafter in 1984, his services have not been recognized by the respondents-State Authorities only on the ground that Three-Member Committee has not approved the recognition of the appointment given to the petitioner as he has not cleared his teachers training certificate examination from a recognized school/college which is approved by the National Council for Teachers Education.

(2.) Counsel for the petitioner submitted that report given by Three-Member Committee which is at annexure-B to the counter affidavit, are absolutely dehors to the facts and law. Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the Act, namely National Council for Teachers Education Act, 1993 came into force w.e.f. 01.7.1995, whereas the petitioner has cleared his teachers training certificate examination on 29th September, 1992 as per Annexure-1-A to the memo of petition from Sister Nivedita College at Kolkata. Thus, both clearance of the teachers training certificate examination as also the appointment of the petitioner as an assistant teacher are prior to commencement of the Act of 1993. This aspect of the matter has not been properly appreciated by the Three-Member Committee. Counsel for the petitioner has also relied upon the decision rendered by this Court in Ravishankar Dubey Vs. The State of Jharkhand and others, 2010 3 JLJR 348, as also the decision rendered by this Court reported in the case of Dinesh Prasad Singh Vs. The State of Jharkhand and others, 2010 4 JLJR 440, as also a decision rendered by this Court reported in Kalpana Lodhiya Vs. State of Jharkhand and others, 2009 1 JLJR 348. In all these decisions, it has been held by this Court that once a teacher has cleared his teachers training certificate examination prior to enforcement of the National Council for Teachers Education Act, 1993, the insistence of clearance of teachers training certificate examination from a recognized school/college is uncalled for and unwarranted and in those decided cases, those petitioners were allowed to continue as Assistant Teachers and the case of the present petitioner is like those petitioners and, therefore, petitioner's services are required to be recognized by the respondents-authorities and necessary consequences may be followed upon recognition of the petitioner as a validly appointed Assistant Teacher. Counsel for the petitioner has also narrated in detail the history how these Project Girls Schools, which are 300 approximately in number, were taken over by the State Government and, therefore, some litigations started and went upto the Apex Court in Civil Appeal Nos. 6626-6681 of 2001 and therein a decision was rendered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and ultimately a committee was constituted, by upholding a Full Bench decision rendered by Hon'ble Patna High Court. Thereafter, Three-Member Committee was constituted vide notification No. 1514 dated 20th July, 2006 and upon the record presented by the Government before the Three-Member Committee, it did not recommend the recognition of services of the petitioner only for the aforesaid reasons. The reason given by the members of the Committee for other similarly situated candidates has been brushed aside, by all the three aforesaid reported decisions of this Court. Petitioner is also sailing in the same boat. Earlier one petitioner has also cleared his teachers training certificate examination from Sister Nivedita College at Kolkata. Specially in the case which is reported in Dinesh Prasad Singh , petitioner has also cleared teachers training certificate examination from the very same college. That Petitioner has also cleared his teachers training certificate examination prior to enforcement of the National Council for Teachers Education Act, 1993, whose petition was allowed by this Court. Likewise, petitioner was also appointed prior to enforcement of the National Council for Teachers Education Act, 1993. This aspect of the matter has not been properly appreciated by the Three-Member Committee while giving their report which is at annexure-B to the counter affidavit filed by the State and hence, the same deserves to be quashed and set aside to the extent it applies to the petitioner and the services of the petitioner may be directed to be recognized by the respondents-State with all consequential effects and benefits including payment of salary and such other allied benefits from the date of appointment of the petitioner i.e. from 21" December, 1984.

(3.) Counsel for the State vehemently submitted that the State Authorities have acted or reacted as per the Three-Member Committee constituted in pursuance of the direction given by Hon'ble Supreme Court in the aforesaid Civil Appeals and as per the recommendation of the Three-Member Committee, which is at annexure-B to the counter affidavit, the services of the petitioner have not been recognized mainly on the ground that petitioner has not cleared his teachers training certificate examination from a college recognized by the National Council for Teachers Education. Counsel for the respondents vehemently submitted that the petitioner has cleared his teachers training certificate examination from Sister Nivedita College at Kolkata which is not recognized by National Council for Teachers Education in the year in which the petitioner cleared his teachers training certificate examination and therefore, the service of the petitioner cannot be recognized. Hence, the petition deserves to be dismissed.