K.H. Nobin Singh, J. - (1.) Heard Shri A. Mohendro, the learned counsel appearing for the petitioners; Shri Athouba Kh., the learned Addl. Govt. Advocate for the State respondents and Shri Phungyo Zingkhai, the learned counsel on behalf of Shri B.P. Sahu, the learned conducting counsel for the respondent No. 3 in W.P. (C) No. 588 of 2014. None is present for the Mayai Lambi College, the private respondent.
(2.) Since both the writ petitions have arisen out of the similar set of facts, the same are being disposed of by this common judgment and order. WP (C ) No. 588 of 2014:
(3.) The present writ petition has been filed by the petitioners praying for quashing the impugned order dated 23-05-2014 issued by the Secretary, Governing Body, Mayai Lambi College, Yumnam Huidrom, Manipur. 3.2. According to the petitioners, the Mayai Lambi College is a Government Aided College established in the year 1981 and at the time of its establishment, it did have facilities only for teaching students upto Degree course in some of the subjects. In the year 1997, the Manipur University issued an Ordinance by which the Honours Courses were introduced, as a result the Colleges were required to have Degree Courses both in Honours and Pass Courses. Accordingly, a meeting of the Governing Body of the Mayai Lambi College was held on 13-03-1997 for consideration of various Agenda including the one relating to vacant posts. On 11-07-1997, the Director, College Development Council, Manipur University addressed a letter to the Principal, Mayai Lambi College directing him to adhere to the intake capacities as mentioned in its earlier letter dated 13-01-1997 and as per the said letter, the Mayai Lambi College was allowed to open honours courses in respect of various subject mentioned therein. 3.3. On 26-08-1997, the Governing Body, Mayai Lambi College issued an advertisement inviting applications from amongst the eligible candidates for recruitment of 37 Lecturers in respect of subjects mentioned therein and in response thereto, the petitioners applied for the said posts. Thereafter, a DPC for appointment of Lecturers was held on 14-09-1997, the recommendation of which was approved by the Governing Body on 15-09-1997 and the result of the DPC was also declared. All the petitioners having been appointed, they joined the Mayai Lambi College as the Lecturers. After the petitioners started working as the Lecturers, there was some misunderstanding between the State Government and the members of the then Governing Body because of which two Civil Rules being C.R. No. 244 of 1997 and C.R. No. 862 of 1997 came to be filed by the petitioners and some of the members of the then Governing Body created all kinds of hurdles in the administration of the College thereby preventing the petitioners from discharging their duties properly. The Mayai Lambi College became a full-fledged Aided College running Honours Courses only because of the appointment of the petitioners as required in the Ordinance issued by the Manipur University in the year 1997. The services of the petitioners were utilized not only by the College but also by the State Government as well as by the Council of Higher Secondary Education, Manipur for evaluation of examination papers and some of the petitioners were detailed for the 12th Lok Sabha Election and in recognition of their services, the petitioner No. 2 was awarded Minor Research Project by the University Grants Commission. In recognition of their appointment as Lecturers of the Mayai Lambi College, the Directorate of Education (U), Government of Manipur issued Identity Cards to the petitioners and the names of the petitioners were included in the College Statistics published by the College Development Council, Manipur University for the year 2002-03. But the petitioners were prevented from discharging their duties without assigning any reason. 3.4. Being aggrieved by the actions of the respondents and in particular, the Principal, Mayai Lambi College, the petitioners and other similarly situated Lecturers filed a writ petition being W.P. (C) No. 1541 of 2001 wherein an interim order dated 03-10-2001 was passed by the then Hon'ble Gauhati High Court directing that the petitioners should not be disturbed by the respondents until further order. In spite of the said court's order and since the petitioners were not allowed to discharge their functions, the petitioners submitted a representation dated 07-05-2004, on receipt of which the Governing Body, the Mayai Lambi College issued a notification dated 11-07-2005 stating that a meeting be held on 19-07-2005 but the meeting was not held on that day and thereafter, the petitioners submitted another representation dated 10-06-2010 for the same purpose. When the writ petition being W.P. (C) No. 1541 of 2001 came up for consideration, the petitioners were asked to withdraw the same on the assurance that their cases would be considered by the Governing Body. But the Governing Body, the Mayai Lambi College failed to consider the cases of the petitioners thereby compelling the petitioners to file another writ petition being W.P. (C) No. 315 of 2013 wherein the Hon'ble High Court expressed the view that the petitioners ought to approach the authority concerned because of which the petitioners submitted a representation dated 27-05-2013 requesting it to allow the petitioners to discharge their function. In spite of the receipt of the said representation, the Governing Body, the Mayai Lambi College failed to take up appropriate steps with the result that the petitioners filed another writ petition being W.P. (C) No. 642 of 2013 which was disposed of on 13-09-2013 with the direction that the respondents and in particular, the respondent No. 4 therein shall consider the representation submitted by the petitioners. Since the said representation was not considered by the Governing Body, the Mayai Lambi College, a contempt petition being Cont. Case (C) No. 3 of 2014 was filed against the Secretary, the Mayai Lambi College. As the Secretary of the Mayai Lambi College failed to appear before the Court, the Superintendent of Police, Imphal West was directed to produce the Secretary before the Court on 16-05-2014 and in a purported compliance of the court's order dated 13-09-2013, the Secretary, Mayai Lambi College issued the impugned order. The instant writ petition has been filed praying for quashing it. ;