SWAPAN KR. CHATTOPADHYAY Vs. STATE OF W.B.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this writ application, the petitioner has prayed, inter alia, for the following reliefs:

(2.) The fact leading to the writ application in brief is as follows.

(3.) When the petitioner was working in the post of Assistant Teacher of Science Group at Laban Hrad Vidyapith, upon prior permission, the petitioner appeared at the M.A. Examination in English of Rabindra Bharati University. Such special leave to appear in the said examination was granted by the President, West Bengal Board of Secondary Education and the same was communicated by memo No. 234/8 dated 18.1.88. The said M.A. Examination was of the year 1983 but actually it was held during the period 5.2.85 to 14.3.85. The Managing Committee of the school took service of the petitioner in the Language Group as well as in Science Group when the petitioner qualified himself with M.A. in English since the year 1985 by the resolution of the Managing Committee dated 8.1.89. The petitioner's service was transferred -from Science Group to Language Group for the benefit of the students since at the material time the school was in need of another English teacher. Such resolution of the Managing Committee along with the revised staff pattern was referred to the District Inspector of Schools (SE), North 24 Parganas, who accorded approval of such staff pattern showing the petitioner as a teacher in Language Group by his decision dated 4.2.89, but subsequently the Additional District Inspector of Schools (SE), North 24 Parganas, by his communication dated 20.2.89 cancelled the same on the ground that there was no signature of the Headmaster in the papers as submitted by the Managing Committee. The school authorities thereafter re-submitted those papers with signature of the Headmaster on 19.4.89 showing the petitioner in the same position under Language Group in the staff pattern. The District Inspector of Schools did not accord any approval and sat light over the issue. The Managing Committee of the school, however, granted post graduate pay scale in favour of the petitioner by its decision dated 8.5.90 in terms of para 16(3) of the Government Order No. 33-Edn(B) dated 7.3.90 which provides scope of such payment to any Assistant Teacher qualified with higher qualification relevant to his teaching post. The Managing Committee allowed such pay scale in terms of the staff pattern in which the petitioner was shown in the Language Group. The petitioner got a chance to be appointed as Headmaster of a junior high school, namely, Maya Kanan Junior High School within the District of Bankura and he was released by the Managing Committee of Laban Hrad Vidyapith with effect from 4.8.94 on lien for 2 years without pay in terms of the circular letter of the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education dated 26.5.94. The pay scale as was fixed by the Managing Committee of the school allowing the post graduate pay scale in favour of the petitioner by its decision dated 8.5.90 also was carried in the junior high school by the petitioner and the same was approved by the District Inspector of Schools (SE), Bankura, vide his decision dated 30.9.94 while according approval of such appointment of the petitioner as Headmaster of the said Junior High School. Laban Hrad Vidyapith referred the last pay certificate of the petitioner to the District Inspector of Schools concerned for counter signature, but the said authority refused to do the same on the ground that the petitioner had drawn excess amount of pay upon being placed in the post graduate pay scale without any approval of the District Inspector of Schools concerned and to that effect a communication was made by the District Inspector of Schools (SE), North 24 Parganas, by his memo No. 625/G dated 4.5.95. The petitioner made representation , but nothing was done on the issue in question, and accordingly this writ application was filed praying the aforesaid reliefs, namely, fixation of pay scale in view of higher qualification in terms of the Government circular letter and release of the same with effect from July 1985, when the petitioner acquired such higher qualification.