ALPANA POWGAM V. THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY AND 6 ORS.

WP(C)/3220/2021

AI Insights

The case involves Alpana Pawgam, a Social Science teacher at Gandhia Janajati M.E. School, who filed a writ petition against the provincialisation of services of two other teachers, Mouchumi Chutia and Biddut Bikash Chutia, under the Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re-organization of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017. The petitioner alleged that her claim was better than that of the respondents, who were provincialised despite her longer service. The court initially suspended the provincialisation of respondent No. 6 pending a decision on the matter and directed the petitioner to pursue a statutory appeal as per the provisions of the 2017 Act.

• Counselvise Citation: [2022] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 690189 (HC-ASSAM NAGALAND MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 29-11-2022
• Assessment Year: misc
• Other Referred Cases: Commissioner of Income Tax and Another -Vs- Chhabil Dass Agarwal
• Laws Referred To: Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re-organization of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017
• Result in Favour of: Partly Allowed
• Court: HIGH COURT
• Department Lawyers: B K KOUSHIK; P SAIKIA; A DEKA
• Assessee Lawyers: B K DAS
• Keywords: Assistant Teachers; Educational Institutions; Statutory Appeal; Provincialisation of Services
• Section: 14; 3(1)(xi)

Judgement Text

"Page No.# 1/5 GAHC010097792021 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/3220/2021 ALPANA POWGAM D/O LATE LILARAM PAWGAM, RESIDENT OF VILLAGE GANDHIA MICHING GAON, PO HEMLAI, PS MORIANI, DIST JORHAT, ASSAM VERSUS THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY AND 6 ORS. DEPARTMENT OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION, GOVT. OF ASSAM, DISPUR, GUWAHATI 06 2:THE DIRECTOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION KAHILIPARA GUWAHATI 19 KAMRUP M ASSAM 3:THE DISTRICT SCRUTINY COMMITTEE JORHAT REPRESENTED BY THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER JORHAT ASSAM 4:THE DISTRICT ELEMENTARY EDUCATION OFFICER JORHAT DISTRICT 5:THE BLOCK ELEMETARY EDUCATION OFFICER EAST BLOCK KOLIAPANI Page No.# 2/5 6:SRI MOUCHUMI CHUTIA OFFICE GANDHIA JANAJATI ME SCHOOL VILLAGE GANDHIA MICHING GAON PO HEMLAI PS MORIANI DIST JORHAT ASSAM 7:BIDDUT BIKASH CHUTIA VILLAGE GANDHIA MICHING GAON PO HEMLAI PS MORIANI DIST JORHAT ASSA Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. B K DAS Advocate for the Respondent : SC, ELEM. EDU BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANASH RANJAN PATHAK ORDER 29.11.2022 Heard Ms. J Kalita, learned counsel appearing on behalf of Mr. B K Das, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. B Koushik, learned Standing counsel, Department of School Education, Assam for the respondent Nos. 1, 2 & 4; Mr. P Saikia, learned Government Advocate, Assam for the respondent No. 3 as well as Mr. A Deka, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent Nos. 6 & 7. The petitioner as well as the respondent Nos. 6 and 7 are serving as Assistant Teachers of Gandhia Janajati M.E. School under East Jorhat Education Block of Jorhat district since its venture stage. The petitioner alleged that disregarding her better claim, the respondent authorities have illegally provincialised the services of the respondent Nos. 6 and 7 Page No.# 3/5 under the Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re- organization of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017 as amended. Being aggrieved, the petitioner has preferred this writ petition. It is submitted by the petitioner that though she is serving as Social Science Teacher in said Gandhia Janajati M.E. School from September 2000 since the venture stage of the said school and that the respondent Nos. 6 & 7 are serving as Hindi and English language teachers of the said school, but the respondent authorities have illegally provincialised their services, leaving aside the petitioner in violation of said 2017 Act. The petitioner placed before the Court that in case of provincialisation of venture Upper Primary/M.E./M.V./M.E. Madrassa under the provisions of Section 3(1)(xi) of said 2017 Act, only one Assistant Teacher of Mathematics and Science, one Social Science Teacher and one Language Teacher can be provincialised. After considering the matter and finding that the respondent No. 6, who is the Headmistress of the said M.E. School and also its English language teacher serving since 11.09.2004 and that respondent No.7 is the Hindi language teacher of the said school serving since 04.08.2000, whereas the petitioner is the Social Science teacher of the said school serving since 04.09.2000 and on further finding that the respondent No. 6 is junior to the respondent No. 7, the Court by order dated 20.07.2021 while issuing notice to the respondents, in the interim suspended the benefits of provincialisation granted to the respondent No. 6 until further orders of the Court. Mr. A. Deka, learned counsel for the respondent Nos. 6 and 7 placed before the Court that Section 14 of said 2017 Act as amended provides for statutory appeal against any such provincialisation, which reads as follows- “Appellate Authority:- The State Level Scrutiny Committee shall be the appellate authority against any recommendation of the District Scrutiny Committee and the State Government in the concerned administrative department shall be the Appellate Authority against any recommendation of the State Level Scrutiny Committee.” Page No.# 4/5 Mr. Deka, learned counsel for the private respondent Nos. 6 and 7, relying on a decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Commissioner of Income Tax and Another -Vs- Chhabil Dass Agarwal, reported in (2014) 1 SCC 603 submitted that when a statutory forum is created by law for redressal of grievances, writ petition should not be entertained ignoring said statutory provision. Mr. Deka, therefore, stated that grievances of the petitioner can be redressed by the statutory appellate forum. After hearing the parties and considering the entire aspects of the matter, the petitioner is directed to submit her statutory appeal before the Secretary in the Department of School (Elementary) Education, Assam as provided under Section 14 of said 2017 Act on or before 31.01.2023 along with a certified copy of this order and a copy of this writ petition including the annexures appended thereto, obtaining necessary acknowledgement from the said authority in that regard. In the event of filing such statutory appeal by the petitioner within the time so specified, the Secretary in the Department of School (Elementary) Education, Assam on verification of the relevant records obtained from the concerned State Level Scrutiny Committee, the District Elementary Education Officer, Jorhat; the Block Elementary Education Officer, Jorhat East Education Block and other concerned authorities pertaining to said Gandhia Janajati M.E. School and the employees serving in that school, shall dispose of the said statutory appeal of the petitioner, with a reasoned order, within a period of 90 days, after giving an opportunity of hearing to the petitioner as well as the respondent Nos. 6 & 7, intimating them about the outcome of said appeal. Subject to filing such statutory appeal by the petitioner before the Secretary, Department of School (Elementary) Education, Assam on or before 31.01.2023, as directed above, in terms of the interim observation made by the Court on 20.07.2021 in the present proceeding, the benefit of provincialisation of the respondent No. 6 under the provisions of the said 2017 Act shall remain suspended, till such disposal of the statutory appeal of the petitioner. However, it is made clear that if on hearing the petitioner and the respondent Page No.# 5/5 Nos. 6 & 7 and on scrutiny of the documents etc., the concerned statutory appellate authority comes to the determination that those two respondents were duly provincialised following the provisions of the said 2017 Act, the respondent authorities shall grant the benefit of provincialisation to the respondent No.6 from the date of giving effect of provincialisation of services of other teachers of the said school and said respondent No. 6 shall be paid arrear and regular salary. In the case, after such hearing, the said statutory appellate authority comes to the conclusion that the petitioner’s service should have been provincialised following the provisions of the said 2017 Act, then the respondent authorities shall provincialise her service from the date of provincialisation of the other teachers of said Gandhia Janajati M.E. School under the East Jorhat Education Block of Jorhat district and shall pay her arrear as well as regular salary from the date of giving effect of provincialisation of the service of the petitioner. However, failure on the part of the petitioner to prefer such statutory appeal before the Secretary, Department of School (Elementary) Education, Assam within the time so specified, the order passed earlier by this Court on 20.07.2021 shall stand automatically vacated. With the above direction and observation, this writ petition stand disposed of. JUDGE Comparing Assistant "