- (1.) Pursuant an advertisement published in the local Newspaper on 08.11.2011, the petitioner offered his candidature and applied for the post of Assistant Teacher in Bengali (Pass) and appeared before the Selection Committee of the School on 17.01.2012 for an interview. The petitioner was selected for the said post of Assistant Teacher in Bengali (Pass) in the school and by a letter dated 29.2.2012 the respondent no. 4 appointed the petitioner in the said post and he joined the school in the said post on 12.3.2012 and since then he has been performing his duties as a Teacher.
(2.) Since after the joining to the said post, the petitioner has been pursuing the office of the respondent no. 4 for obtaining the approval of his appointment in the aforesaid post from the office of the respondent no. 3 and he was assured that the approval would be given by the Government in due course. The petitioner repeatedly requested the respondent no. 4 to take steps for approval of his appointment so that he gets the salary and all other service benefits from the date of his joining as a Teacher. By his letters dated 12.11.2012, 12.6.2013 and 02.01.2014, the petitioner expressed all his anxiety and plight to the Secretary of the School.
(3.) After a prolonged silence, the Secretary of the school, by a detailed letter dated 30.4.2014, narrated the entire fact situation regarding the appointments made by the school including the petitioner with the following facts: (a) By a letter dated 14.12.2010, the Headmaster of the school submitted relevant papers and documents for filling up 12 (twelve) vacancies of teaching and non -teaching staff of the school in terms of the resolution of the Managing Committee of the school and prayed for permission from the Respondent no. 3. (b) After a rigorous persuasion for considerable period of time in the office of the Respondent no. 3, the prior permission to fill up the aforesaid vacancies was not granted by the Respondent no. 3 in favour of the school. Expressing the difficulties, the authorities of the school sent a letter dated 19.9.2011 to the Respondent no. 3, seeking his immediate action regarding grant of prior permission for filling up the aforesaid vacancies in the school within a fortnight. (c) Since the request in the form of the letter dated 19.9.2011 yielded no result, by another letter dated 17.10.2011, the authorities of the school withdrew all their requests and applications for prior permission for filling up the vacant posts in the school as the school is an integrated Higher Secondary School having classes from I to XII and in terms of Section 26 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, the School Authority is under a statutory obligation to ensure that the vacancies for the teaching staff of the institution more than 10% of the total sanctioned strength are not kept vacant for indefinite period. (d) Thereafter, the school started selection process by publishing advertisements in the Newspapers being 'Aajkal' dated 08.11.2011 and 09.11.2011 inviting applications from the candidates for interview. After the interview was completed, the selection committee prepared the panel of selected candidates for each of the posts and the same was approved by the Managing Committee of the school. (e) The approval of appointments made in the posts as aforesaid were not made by the Respondent no. 3 for months together and facing such a situation, the authorities of the school by a detailed letter dated 09.5.2012 requested the Respondent no. 3 to approve the appointments made by the school in the vacant posts of both Teaching and Non -Teaching Staff. (f) Meanwhile, Sri Prasanta Das, one unsuccessful candidate in the selection process for the post in Geography, moved a writ petition before this Hon'ble Court challenging the appointment of Sri Abhishek Ghosh in the said post on the ground of violation of the Notification No. 641 -Edn(S) dated 23.5.1974 framing Special Rules for Minority Education Institutions ("The Special Rules' for short) and Notification regarding the Recruitment Rules of the Minority Educational Institutions being G.O. 1314(50) -SE(S)4A - 35/2002 dated 17.9.2002 ('the Recruitment Rules' for short) being W.P. 549 of 2012. The said writ petition was disposed of by the Hon'ble High Court by order dated 17.7.2012 by directing the concerned District Inspector of Schools to consider the legality of the appointment of Sri Abhishek Ghosh in the post in question and to give a reasonable opportunity of hearing to the School Authority, the writ petitioner and the respondent no. 6, Sri Abhishek Ghosh before taking the ultimate decision in this regard and a reasoned order should be passed in support of his ultimate conclusion within eight weeks from the date of communication of the order. The concerned authority was also directed to intimate its decision to the petitioner, the School Authority and the respondent no. 6 within two weeks thereafter. (g) In compliance of the aforesaid order of Hon'ble Court, by a detailed order bearing Memo No. 54_Law dated 20th March, 2013 the Respondent no. 3 referred to the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in this regard and relied on the two decisions of National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions ('NCMEI' for short) where inspite of the allegation of violation of the Recruitment Rules of 2002, NCMEI the right of those school was upheld to appoint teaching and non -teaching staff and the same were ultimately approved by the Government and recorded reasons viz., (1) in the instant case 2002 Recruitment Rules of 2002 will govern the instant case and the 2012 Rules would not be applicable; (2) the two orders passed by the NCMEI where with regard to the appointment in sanctioned posts; (3) the instant case involves policy of the Government regarding Minority Educational Institutions and (4) the Recruitment Rules of 2002 have been violated. The Respondent no. 3 on one hand disposed of the matter and on the other hand transmitted the entire matter to the Commissioner of School Education for perusal and taking appropriate action. (h) The school authorities heavily relying on two similar situations where the concerned Department of the Government did not grant prior permission to two Christian Minority Education Institutions inspite of their request for the same, the proceedings were initiated by those two educational institutions before the NCMEI and the NCMEI by orders dated 28.10.2010 held that selection and appointment of teachers made by the respective schools were in order, as the schools had their right of appointing teaching and non -teaching staff with the only condition that the candidates selected should have in their credit the minimum qualification prescribed by the authority and refusal to accord approval and by refusing to approve, the approving authorities had gone beyond the judicial frontier of their authority and appeared to have made overt attempt to interfere with the administration of minority of educational institution and directed the government to accord approval of the appointments and also held that the reservation rules were not applicable to those schools. Subsequently, the Assistant Secretary of the government issued directions to the Director of School Education to comply with the orders passed by the Chairman of the NCMEI. (i) However, Sri Abhishek Ghosh filed a writ petition in the Hon'ble High Court challenging the said order dated 20.3.2013 passed by the respondent no. 3 and the said writ petition being W.P. 21501 (W) of 2013 was heard and disposed of by the Hon'ble High Court by order dated 26.7.2013 by directing the respondent no. 3 to take a decision by passing a reasoned order and was sitting tight over the matter, Sri Abhishek Ghosh filed another writ petition being W.P. 35586(W) of 2013 challenging the inaction of the respondent no. 3 in the matter Since the respondent no. 3 did not act according to the order dated 26.7.2013 passed by the Hon'ble High Court as mentioned hereinabove and by order dated 23.12.2013, the Hon'ble High Court directed the respondent no. 3 to approve the appointment of Sri Abhishek Ghosh in the post of Assistant Teacher in Geography w.e.f. 12.3.2012 and pay all the salary and service benefits from that date within a period of six weeks from the date of communication of the order and in the respondent no. 3 has approved the appointment of Sri Abhishek Ghosh in the said post. The school has also sent the requisition for his salary and all service benefits to the office of the District Inspector of Schools (SE), Kolkata in terms of the order passed by the Hon'ble High Court at Calcutta. ;