Gyan Sudha Misra, J. - (1.) A common cause has prompted the petitioners in all these writ petitions to move this Court challenging a notification dated 22.8.97 issued by the office of the Director, Primary and Secondary Education, Bikaner, Rajasthan, by which the notification for admission into the Teachers' Training Educational Instituted (commonly referred to as the STC Course) has been amended laying down therein that the basis for selection and admission into the course would he the percentage of marks obtained in the Secondary examination and not the Senior Secondary. Since all these writ petitions have raised identical questions of law, hence they were ordered to be consolidated which are now being disposed of by this common order. Learned counsel for the parties have also been heard it some length at the admission stage itself in view of the fact that the process of selection into the STC Course is at a stand-still on account of an order of stay granted by this Court.
(2.) Before adverting to a discussion of the dispute involved in the case at hand, it may be placed on record, the admitted position which is vital for deciding the controversy raised herein which Rule 6.1, 6.2, and 6.3 of the Rules for admission into the STC Course which envisages that the Secondary with Hindi, English, and Maths alongwith other compulsory subjects and Senior Secondary/Higher Secondary from a recognised Board, are the essential certificates for admission into the STC Course, wherein it has been specifically laid down that for admission into the course, the basis of assessment of merit would be the marks obtained by the the candidates in the Senior Secondary which is to the following effect:
(3.) It is also not in dispute that in pursuance of this rule, a notification was issued on 13.7.97 for admission into the Teachers' Training Institution in the State of Rajasthan for the session 1997-98 which was published in two daily newspapers and applications were invited. Alongwith the application, two forms were issued in which one happened to be the application form, and another was a check-list form were in the marks obtained in the Higher Secondary/Sr. Secondary only had been required to be furnished by the candidates for preparation of the merit-list, and in the booklet also which was supplied alongwith the application-form, the minimum educational qualification for admission had been prescribed as Sr. Secondary/Higher Secondary examination which was rightly understood that the merit-list was to be prepared on the basis of the marks obtained in the Sr. Secondary examination. it is also quite relevant to State that the notification dated 30.7.97 also specifically disclosed that the method of selection would he as per the rules laid down in the booklet which required only the marks obtained by a candidate in the Senior Secondary.;