Rajasthan High Court - Jodhpur
State And Ors vs Miss.Firdos Tarannum And Anr on 12 January, 2022
Bench: Akil Kureshi, Rekha Borana
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT
JODHPUR
D.B. Spl. Appl. Writ No. 534/2005
1. The State of Rajasthan through the Secretary, Department of
Education, Government of Rajasthan, Secretariat, Jaipur.
2. The Director, Primary Education, Rajasthan, Jaipur.
3. The District Education Officer, (Primary Education Ist Bikaner,
Rajasthan.
----Appellant
Versus
1. Miss. Firdos Tarannum D/o Shri Mohd. Ibhrim, aged 25
years, R/o Mohallaha Choongarn, Brahampuri Chowk,
Bikaner (Raj.)
2. Aabida Mughal D/o Shri Akbar Beg Mughal, C/o District
Education Officer, (Primary Education), Ist Bikaner
(Rajasthan).
----Respondent
For Appellant(s) : Mr. Manish Vyas, AAG with Mr. Kailash
through V.C. Choudhary
Mr. Mahaveer Bishnoi
For Respondent(s) : Mr. Sukhdev Sharma for Mr. A.K.
through V.C. Rajvanshi
Mr. Rajesh Joshi, Senior Advocate with
Mr. Vineet Dave
Mr. R.N. Mathur, Senior Advocate with
Mr. Himanshu Jain
Mr. Manoj Bohra
Mr. B.P. Mathur
HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. AKIL KURESHI
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE REKHA BORANA
Order
12/01/2022
The petitioner has challenged the judgment of the learned
Single Judge dated 26.09.2005 passed in S.B. Civil Writ Petition
No.1379/2004. The case has chequered history.
Briefly stated the facts leading to this appeal are that the
respondent-original petitioner had filed the said writ petition with
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the prayer that the qualification of Adib-Mahir acquired by the
petitioner from Jamia Urdu, Aligarh be declared as equivalent to
Senior Secondary Examination and had also sought direction that
the marks obtained by the petitioner in the said course be taken
into account for the purpose of preparing merit list for the post of
Teacher Grade-III Urdu (Minority Language). The petitioner had
first cleared higher secondary examination from the Board of
Secondary Education in the year 1996. She thereafter acquired
two years school teacher training certificate. She also acquired
qualification of Adib-Mahir from Jamia Urdu, Aligarh and thereafter
acquired degree of Adib-e-Kamil from the said institution.
On 07.11.2000, the State Government issued an
advertisement inviting applications for appointment to the post of
Teacher Grade-III Urdu (Minority Language) notifying 400
vacancies which were divided district-wise. The qualification
prescribed for the said post was secondary/higher
secondary/senior secondary with Urdu as optional subject and the
candidate must possess senior secondary certificate recognized by
the State of Rajasthan with five subjects which must include
Maths, Hindi and English. The petitioner applied for the post in
Bikaner district. The respondents conducted interviews of the
candidates. The petitioner was placed at serial No.5 in the merit-
list for Bikaner district. Against four vacancies notified for Bikaner
district, since none of the first four candidates ahead of the
petitioner accepted the appointment, the petitioner expected that
she would be offered appointment. The respondents, however,
appointed one Ms. Aabida Mughal in preference to the petitioner
though she was lower in the merit list. This prompted the
petitioner to file the said writ petition.
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The writ petition was allowed by the learned Single Judge by
the impugned judgment dated 26.09.2005. The stand of the State
authorities that the petitioner was not qualified for the post in
question was not accepted. The petitioner's stand that the
qualification of Adib-Mahir for which training was imparted at
Jamia Urdu institute has been recognized by the State of
Rajasthan was accepted mainly relying on the decision of Division
Bench in case of Altaf Bano Vs. State & others (D.B. Civil Special
Appeal No.258/2004 - decided on 06.04.2005).
This decision of the learned Single Judge was challenged by
the State Government in the present appeal which was at one
stage allowed by a judgment dated 20th January, 2006 which was
reported in 2006 (2) WLC (Raj.) 596. This judgment was carried
in appeal before the Supreme Court by the concerned institution.
The Supreme Court disposed of the appeal by an order dated 25th
October 2018. The case was remanded before the High Court for
fresh decision in accordance with law on the ground that the
institution was not heard. A fresh decision to be rendered after
hearing the institution concerned. Consequently, this appeal has
been placed before the Division Bench for fresh consideration.
Learned Additional Advocate General submitted that the
learned Single Judge has committed an error in allowing the writ
petition and holding that the certificate issued by the Jamia Urdu
institution is recognized in the State of Rajasthan ignoring the
prevalent Government circulars and instructions. He submitted
that in the case of Altaf Bano (supra), these circulars were not
brought to the notice of the Court. He contended that the said
institution is not an institution established by the Central
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Government or State Government or recognized by the
authorities.
On the other hand, learned counsel for the original petitioner
submitted that the State Government has recognized the course in
question as equivalent to secondary certificate in Urdu language.
This was the view of Division Bench in case of Altaf Bano (supra)
and even prior to that in case of Tayyab Hussain Vs. State of
Rajasthan & Ors. [2003 (1) WLC (Raj.) 489].
The institution has produced several documents in this
appeal and also filed reply. The counsel for the institution took us
through such additional materials brought on record at the
appellate stage and submitted that the institution has been in
existence since decades. The institution and the courses offered
by it are recognized and considered equivalent to Secondary,
Higher Secondary and Graduation courses by several States
including the State of Rajasthan and the Central Government.
For example, it was pointed out that the Government of India has
issued Office Memorandum dated 28th June, 1978 under which the
courses Adib examination standard, Adib Mahir, and Adib Kamil
imparted by this institution have been recognized and considered
equivalent to High School/Matriculation, intermediate standard
and B.Ed. standard respectively. Our attention was also drawn to
the similar recognition granted to these courses by the Magadh
University, Calcutta University and Jamia Islamia University.
Similar recognitions have also been granted by the State of
Andhra Pradesh under Circular dated 24.03.1960, by the State of
Jammu and Kashmir under a clarification dated 9th March, 1981,
by the State of Uttar Pradesh by communication dated 13 th
September, 1964, by the State of M.P. vide order dated 11 th June,
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1996. In particular, it was pointed out that the Government of
Rajasthan by order dated 3rd February, 1975 had also decided to
recognize these examinations conducted by Jamia Urdu institute
as equivalent to the examinations noted above. Similarly, the
Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education had also issued a circular
on 31.07.2002 to this effect. Based on these orders and circulars,
the counsel contended that the institution and the concerned
courses offered by the institution have been duly recognized by
various State Governments, Central Government and educational
institutions across the country since decades. Since the institution
was not made a party in the petition, such documents could not
be brought on record. He also relied on the decisions of two
Division Benches of this Court in case of Tayyab Hussain (supra)
and Altaf Bano (supra).
In case of Tayyab Hussain (supra), the petitioner had passed
secondary examination from the Board of Secondary Education
and thereafter acquired Adib Kamil course from Jamia Urdu
Institute of Aligarh. His contention was that this qualification was
recognized by the Government of Rajasthan as equivalent to
graduation. In this context, the Division Bench came to the
conclusion that the petitioner was eligible for the post of Teacher,
following observations were made:
"22. The qualification about Board of Secondary
Education has been referred, is only an alternative.
Those who do not possess Adib, Adib Mahir/Adib Kamil
qualification. In that event the certificate of Senior
Secondary Education from a Board must have been
passed with five papers or Education from a Board must
have been passed with five papers or equivalent
examination of which 3 compulsory paper viz., Maths,
English and Hindi with an optional subject of Urdu.
Those persons who have Adib/Adib Mahir/Adib Kamil
which are specialised qualification in Urdu, is not
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required to have Urdu an optional subject in
Secondary."
A more pointed controversy that came to be decided in the
present context was in case of Altaf Bano (supra). This litigation
also arose out of the same advertisement dated 07.11.2000 under
which the State of Rajasthan had invited the applications for
recruitment to 400 posts of Urdu teachers Grade-III in different
districts. As per the advertisement, the candidate must possess
secondary/higher secondary/senior secondary certificate by Board
of Secondary Education or institution recognized by the State of
Rajasthan with Urdu as one of the optional subjects and out of five
subjects Maths, Hindi and English as compulsory subjects.
Further, the candidates must possess School Teacher Training
certificate from the institution recognized by the State of
Rajasthan. The petitioner therein had acquired the degrees of
B.Com and B.Ed. She had also pursued the course of Adib Mahir
from Jamia Urdu, Aligarh and claimed the same was equivalent to
intermediate, senior secondary examination. She was not offered
appointment though she was included in the merit list. She had
therefore approached the High Court and the learned Single Judge
had dismissed the petition. In the appeal, the Court considered
the question of recognition of her qualifications of as Adib Mahir
on the premise of the stand of the State Government that such
qualifications were not obtained from university established by
law. The Division Bench referred to the order dated 03.02.1965
issued by the State of Rajasthan and observed as under:
"5. In view of the aforesaid Notification it cannot be said
that the appellant has not passed Abid Mahir and Adib Kamil
Examinations from an institution not recognized by the
Government of Rajasthan. Abid Mahir is equivalent to
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Intermediate i.e., Sr. Secondary. Thus, in our view the
appellant has been denied appointment on the post of
Teacher Grade III (Urdu) on an erroneous premise. A serious
miscarriage of justice has been caused to her in denying
appointment on the aforesaid post irrespective of the fact that
she qualified and stood in merit."
In addition to respectfully accepting the view of the Division
Bench in the case of Altaf Bano (supra) we are also independently
of the view that the stand of the State Government that the
petitioner was not eligible for appointment to the post in question
is invalid. As noted, the institution in question and courses offered
are recognized by several States and Central Government since
decades. Closure to home, the State of Rajasthan as far back in
the year 1965 had issued an order, which reads as under:
"Government of Rajasthan
(General Administration (B) Department)
No. F.2(l 7)GA(B) Department Dated Jaipur, the 21st Jan., 65
3rd Feb., 65.
ORDER
Sub- Recognition of different Urdu Examinations conducted by Zamiya Urdu, Aligarh.
Government have decided to recognize the following Examinations conducted by the Jamia Urdu, Aligarh as equivalent to the examinations noted against each so far as the Stapdard of Urdu is concerned for purpose of recruitment in the appropriate fields under this State Government.
Name of the Examination - Equivalent to the
standard of Urdu in the
following Examinations.
Adib High School
Adib Mahir Intermediate
Adib Kamil B.A.
Sd/-
A.L. Roongta.
(A.L. Roongta)
Deputy Secretary to the Government."
The Rajasthan Secondary School Board had also issued similar clarification on 31.07.2002. The courses in question and (Downloaded on 15/01/2022 at 08:29:10 PM) (8 of 11) [SAW-534/2005] their equivalence have been thus recognized and accepted since long. The State Government therefore now cannot take the stand that the course followed by the petitioner was not from an institute established by the Central or the State Government and therefore, the petitioner was not qualified to hold the post in question.
We may also record that the State Secondary School Board had published a booklet in the year 2007 (copy produced on record) in which there is a list of other boards, universities and institutions whose courses and examinations have been recognized by the secondary school board. The courses of Adib examination and Adib Mahir examination imparted by Jamia Urdu, Aligarh have been recognized and equated with secondary examination and higher secondary examination respectively.
Before closing we must deal with three documents submitted by the learned Additional Advocate General. First such document is a communication 23.11.1991 issued by the State of Rajasthan which provides that the Central Government has in its communication dated 04.07.1952 provided that the courses offered by the university or institution established by the Central or State Government or which have been recognized by the University Grants Commission would be recognized and therefore degrees and diplomas granted by such institutions would not have to be separately recognized. The second document is a communication dated 24.04.1993 issued by the Director, Primary and Secondary Education, State of Rajasthan in which after referring to the above noted communication dated 23.11.1991 it has been stated that the Jamia Urdu Aligarh is not an institution (Downloaded on 15/01/2022 at 08:29:10 PM) (9 of 11) [SAW-534/2005] established by the university or the board and the course of Mohalim-E-Urdu will not be considered equivalent to B.Ed degree.
In our opinion, these communications would not change the complexion so far as Government order dated 03.02.1965 is concerned. In the said order specifically the Government has decided to recognize specific named courses offered by the institution and also provided their equivalence. The communication dated 23.11.1991 merely records the stand of the Central Government that in relation to the institutions established by the Central or the State Government or recognized by the UGC, there would be no need to separately recognize the courses offered by them. This does not mean that no other courses of these institutions can be recognized by the State Government. The communication dated 24.04.1993 is primary a reiteration of the stand adopted by the State Government in the communication dated 23.11.1991 and it further specifically de-recognizes a particular course offered by the Jamia Urdu Aligarh namely the course of Mohalim-E-Urdu, which shall not be considered equivalent to B.Ed.
Reference has also been made to the office order dated 05.07.2011 issued by the secondary education board in which it is recorded that the question of recognizing the course offered by the Jamia Urdu Aligarh have been considered in the board meeting dated 19.05.2011. The institution was also given opportunity of hearing. Decision of this Court in the case of Firdos Tarannum (the present case in which at that time the Division Bench judgment held field) was also examined. The Government communication dated 24.04.1993 was also taken into consideration. Eventually, it was decided not to recognize the courses offered by the said (Downloaded on 15/01/2022 at 08:29:10 PM) (10 of 11) [SAW-534/2005] institution and the earlier recognization was withdrawn. Even this development can have no impact in the present proceedings. The de-recognization from the secondary school board to the courses offered by the said institution came about in the year 2011. The same can have no adverse impact on the students who already pursued the courses and obtained certificates of completion of the courses earlier. These certificates were first recognized and considered equivalent to the relevant qualifications by the State Government since the year 1965 which continued without any further change thereafter except for the said two clarifications issued in the year 1991 and 1993. The secondary school board also had granted specific recognition to these courses in the year 2002, it was recalled only in the year 2011 which can have only prospective effect.
Under the circumstances, we do not find that the learned Single Judge committed any error. We may record that in view of the conflict between the two decisions of the Division Benches of this Court in the cases of Altaf Bano (supra) and Firdos Tarannum (supra), a reference was made to the larger bench. In Firdos Tarannum (supra) Supreme Court has remanded the proceedings before this Court and which are now being decided by this judgment which in any case is not in conflict with the view expressed in the case of Altaf Bano(supra). The reference to the larger bench would therefore become one of no consequence.
The learned Single Judge while disposing of the writ petition had directed the State authorities to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment on the post of Teacher Grade-III Urdu (minority language) pursuant to the said advertisement dated 07.11.2000 and if appointed she would be granted all (Downloaded on 15/01/2022 at 08:29:10 PM) (11 of 11) [SAW-534/2005] consequential benefits. Several years have passed and the litigation remained pending at one stage or the other. We do not think that the State exchequer should be burdened with the payment of idle wages for the past period to the petitioner even if she were to be appointed. Under the circumstances, while disposing of this appeal, the judgment of the learned Single Judge is modified by holding that the State authorities shall consider the petitioner for appointment to the post in question according to her merit position and if appointed, she shall be granted all consequential benefits except back wages for the past period. In other words, the petitioner would have the benefit of seniority for the past period from the date the person below the petitioner in merit list was appointed.
The appeal is disposed of accordingly.
(REKHA BORANA),J (AKIL KURESHI),CJ
60-a.asopa/-
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