Gauhati High Court
Ferdousi Khanam vs The State Of Assam And Anr on 21 December, 2022
Author: Manash Ranjan Pathak
Bench: Manash Ranjan Pathak
Page No.# 1/6
GAHC010257772022
THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT
(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
Case No. : WP(C)/8208/2022
FERDOUSI KHANAM
W/O- AMRUL HOQUE, R/O- VILL- ATANAGR, P.O. BAZARGHAT, P.S.
RATABARI, DIST.- KARIMGANJ, ASSAM- 788733
VERSUS
THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR
TO BE REP. BY THE COMM. AND SECY. TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM,
ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPTT., DISPUR, GHY-06
2:THE DIRECTOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
ASSAM
KAHILIPARA
GHY-1
Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. M H LASKAR
Advocate for the Respondent : SC, ELEM. EDU
Page No.# 2/6
BEFORE
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MANASH RANJAN PATHAK
ORDER
21-12-2022 Heard Mr. M. H. Laskar, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. B. Kaushik, learned Standing Counsel, Elementary Education Department for the respondent Nos. 1 and 2.
The petitioner passed her Central Teachers Eligibility Test (CTET) January, 2021, result of which was declared on 26.02.2021.
The Director of Elementary Education, Assam on 11.09.2020 issued an advertisement inviting applications from the permanent residents of Assam qualified in Assam Teachers Eligibility Test conducted by the Elementary Education Department of Assam for filling up of 3941 vacancies of Assistant Teachers of Lower Primary Schools and Assistant Teacher, Science Teacher, Assamese Language Teacher and Manipuri Language Teacher of Upper Primary Schools under the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam.
As the said advertisement of the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam dated 11.09.2020 did not invite any application from the CTET qualified candidates, being aggrieved, such CTET qualified candidates approached this Court in 17 numbers of writ petitions being WP(C) Nos. - 3720/2020, 3722/2020, 3727/2020, 3833/2020, 3838/2020, 3851/2020, 3860/2020, 3866/2020, 3898/2020, 4156/2020, 4174/2020, 4227/2020, 4237/2020, 4256/2020, 4258/2020, 4282/2020 and 4406/2020 challenging the said advertisement dated 11.09.2020. By a common judgment and order dated 18.12.2020, a coordinate Bench of this Court dismissed all those writ petitions.
Being aggrieved 50 (fifty) numbers of writ petitioners of those writ petitions, noted above, preferred an appeal being Writ Appeal No. 24/2021 challenging the said Page No.# 3/6 common judgment and order dated 18.12.2020, passed by the learned Single Judge whereby their writ petitions were dismissed.
The Hon'ble Division Bench after hearing the appellants and the respondents therein by its judgment and order dated 03.02.2021 set aside the common judgment and order dated 18.12.2020, passed by the learned Single Judge in those writ petitions preferred by the CTET qualified candidates and allowed the respondents in the Elementary Education Department of the State to fill up the vacancies as advertised on 11.09.2020 excluding 916 numbers of posts meant for CTET qualified candidates, who have approached the Court challenging the said advertisement dated 11.09.2020 of the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam.
The observation made by the Hon'ble Division in said WA No. 24/2021 vide judgment and order dated 03.02.2021 at paragraphs 53 and 54 are as follows:--
"52. It has been stated at the Bar by the learned senior counsel appearing for the State that since there was no interim order operating in the writ petitions, the process of selection of candidates pursuant to the advertisement dated 11.09.2020 involving only the State TET qualified candidates has progressed and at present the same is at an advanced stage. Mr. Saikia, learned senior counsel for the State has also submitted that if the entire selecting process is interfered with at this stage, the same would adversely impact a large number of schools facing acute shortage of teachers.
53. There can be no doubt about the fact that the ultimate beneficiary of this recruitment process would be the large number of children who may suffer if there is undue delay in appointment of teachers. We are also conscious of the fact that there are 3941 vacancies advertised by the department and the total number of writ petitioners who had approached this court is 916. We make it very clear that all these 916 candidates shall be considered against the existing 3941 vacancies. But even if their candidature is ultimately accepted, all the writ petitioners including the present appellants can at best fill up 916 vacancies and no further. Although, there are only 50 appellants before us who have assailed the impugned judgment and order dated 18.12.2020 passed by the learned Single Judge, yet, since the impugned judgment has been set aside and in order to avoid future litigations on the same issue, we deem it appropriate to grant similar relief to the appellants as the other writ petitioners who are not before us but are similarly situated."
In compliance of the judgment and order dated 03.02.2021 passed in said WA No. 24/2021, the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam issued an advertisement on Page No.# 4/6 04.05.2022 specifying that the said advertisement is only for the writ petitioners involved in the concerned writ petitions who fulfills all other eligibility criteria for filling up of remaining vacant posts against the advertisement dated 11.09.2020 for the posts of Assistant Teachers of Upper Primary Schools and Lower Primary Schools under the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam.
It is submitted by the petitioner that pursuant to the said advertisement dated 04.05.2022, she submitted her application and her documents have also been verified. However, apprehending that her candidature will not be considered by the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam, she has preferred this writ petition for a direction to the Director of Elementary Education, Assam to consider her candidature on the basis of her merit along with other candidates in terms of online application submitted against the advertisement dated 12.05.2022 vide No.EAA/SIU/145/Pt-1/2020/38 and further for a direction to the respondent authorities to appoint her as an Assistant Teacher in the Bengali Medium Upper Primary School on merit basis against the said advertisement dated 12.05.2022.
The petitioner also submitted that as on date, there are altogether 318 numbers of vacancies of Assistant Teachers in Bengali Medium Lower Primary Schools and 281 numbers of vacancies of Assistant Teachers in Bengali Medium Upper Primary Schools under the Director of Elementary Education, Assam as published by the said authority on 28.10.2022.
Petitioner further submitted that earlier, similarly situated candidates, preferred a writ petition being WP(C) No. 5954/2022, in which a coordinate Bench of this Court on 12.09.2022 considered and directed to list the said writ petition before the Hon'ble Division Bench. Pursuant to the same, said WP(C) No. 5954/2022 was placed before the Hon'ble Division Bench and on the prayer of the respondent Sarba Siksha Abhiyan (SSA), Assam; the Hon'ble Division Bench by order dated 09.12.2022 adjourned the said WP(C) No. 5954/2022 till 23.01.2023.
Page No.# 5/6 On being enquired, Mr. Laskar, learned counsel for the petitioner on instruction submitted that the petitioner did not prefer any writ petition with regard to the advertisement issued on 11.09.2020 and have filed this writ petition for the first time after the said advertisement dated 04.05.2022 issued by the Director of Elementary Education, Assam.
From the perusal of the paragraphs 53 and 54 of the said judgment and order dated 03.02.2021, passed in WA No. 24/2021, it is very clear that the Hon'ble Division Bench granted such relief to CTET qualified candidates not only to those 50 appellants but also to other writ petitioners of the common judgment and order dated 18.12.2020 who challenged the said advertisement dated 11.09.2020 and the present petitioner was not a petitioner in either of those 17 writ petitions, noted above.
From the reading of the said advertisement dated 04.05.2022 issued by the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam it is very clear that the applications were invited only from the writ petitioners involved in the concerned writ petitions and that those writ petitioners were requested to visit the official Website of the Director of Elementary Education, Assam and to fill up their online application form and upload the relevant documents from midnight of 25.05.2022 to the midnight of 25.06.2022.
Further, the said advertisement specified that the writ petitioners must mention the writ petition number and the serial number of his/her name in the concerned writ petition in the relevant fields, while submitting the online application, informing that the selection will be done in compliance of the final order and directions of the Hon'ble Gauhati High Court in WA No. 24/2021.
As noted above, the petitioner passed her CTET January, 2021 on 26.02.2021 and she was not a writ petitioner in those 17 numbers of writ petitions challenging the advertisement dated 11.09.2020 issued by the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam and therefore she does not fulfill the requisite criteria as advertised on 04.05.2022 issued by the Directorate of Elementary Education, Assam.
Page No.# 6/6 On conjoint reading of the paragraphs 53 and 54 of the judgment and order dated 03.02.2021, passed by Hon'ble Division Bench in WA No. 24/2021 with the advertisement dated 04.05.2022 issued by the Director of Elementary Education, Assam, the Court found that the petitioner is not eligible to apply for the post as advertised by the Director of Elementary Education, Assam vide advertisement No.EAA/SIU/145/Pt-1/2020/38 on 04.05.2022.
Accordingly, the prayer made by the petitioner in this writ petition cannot be considered.
As such this writ petition, being devoid of merit stands dismissed.
JUDGE Comparing Assistant