Allahabad High Court
Committee Of Management, Arya Kanya ... vs Secretary, Arya Kanya Inter College, ... on 1 September, 1998
Equivalent citations: 1998(3)AWC2166, 1999 ALL. L. J. 124, 1999 A I H C 1581, (1999) 2 UPLBEC 77, (1998) 3 ALL WC 2166, (1998) 34 ALL LR 625
Author: O.P. Garg
Bench: O.P. Garg
JUDGMENT O.P. Garg, J.
1. By means of this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, it is prayed that the resolution which is Annexure-6 to the writ petition, adopted in the meeting dated 25.8.1997 selecting 6 executive members be quashed and the respondents be directed to select 6 executive members by informing and serving all the 51 members of the general body. Subsequently, it was also pleaded that the election held on 25.8.1997 in which Jagdish Prasad Varshney--respondent No. 7 is alleged to have been elected as Manager, be quashed.
2. Counter and rejoinder-affidavits have been exchanged. Heard Sri A. N. Bhargava, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri S. S. Chauhan as well as Sri Arun Tandon, learned counsel for the respondents.
3. To begin with, it may be mentioned that it is not within the province of this Court exercising writ jurisdiction to decide the validity or otherwise of the selection/election of six executive members in pursuance of the meeting held on 25.8.1997. The direction that the respondents should select six executive members after giving information to 51 members of the general body cannot also be passed by this Court as such directions require scrutiny of controversial and complex facts, which is not possible in writ jurisdiction. For challenging the resolution adopted in the meeting of 25.8.1997, Annexure-6, and for the relief that all the 51 members of the general body be invited to select six executive members, petitioner may take recourse to appropriate proceedings before the competent authority. Sri A. N. Bhargava learned counsel for the petitioner frankly conceded on the above point and was fair enough in not pressing for the reliefs, which were originally incorporated in the writ petition. He. however, urged that the validity of the election dated 25.8.1997, which were held by a committee of management, the term of which had already expired, can be tested by this Court and if the elections have been held after the expiry of the term of the previous committee of management, without the agency of Prabandha Sanchalak, they have to be ignored and direction has to be passed by this Court to hold the fresh elections. This submission made on behalf of the petitioner has been repelled by S. Sri S. S. Chauhan and Arun Tandon. learned counsel for the respondents. Therefore, the moot point for consideration which arises for determination in this writ petition is that whether the new committee of management which came to be constituted as a result of the elections held on 25.8.1997 is a validly elected committee or not. On this point, i have heard learned counsel for the parties at considerable length.
4. Sri A. N. Bhargava, learned counsel for the petitioner pointed out that the last election of the committee of management was held on 20.7.1994 and according to the scheme of administration, the term of the committee of management is only 3 years, which obviously expired on 19.7.1997 and allowing grace period of one month, the election to constitute new committee of management could be held latest by 19.8.1997 while in the present case, the elections of the new committee of management of which Sri Jagdish Prasad Varshney claims himself to be the manager, were held on 25.8.1997 and in this manner, the elections were held after 3 years 1 month and 5 days. Sri Bhargava placed reliance on the decisions in Committee of Management, Sukhpura Inter College, Sukhpura, District Ballia and another v. Alleged Committee of Management, Sukhpura Inter College. Sukhpura, District Ballia and others, (1998) 1 UPLBEC 379 ; Committee of Management Kanya Kalyan Gurukul Shiksha Sansthan Uchchttar Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Bhaiswal, District Muzaffarnagar and others, (1992) 19 ALR 265 ; Committee of Management Sri Gandhi Inter College. Chhur, Meerut and another v. D.D.E., 1st Region Meerut and another. 1989 AWC 23 ; and. Dr. Shallendra Kumar Sachem v. D.I.O.S., Hamirpur and others, (1987) UPLBEC 977. The gamut of all these rulings is that the committee of management, the term of which has automatically come to an end. after the expiry of the period prescribed in the scheme of administration, has no power to hold the fresh elections to constitute the new committee of management and it is only the Prabandh Sanchalak who is empowered to get the elections held. It has also been decided in the aforesaid decisions that the recognition of a new committee of management elected after the expiry of the previous term by the old committee of management is liable to be quashed. In the Division Bench decision in Sukhpura Inter College's case (supra). It has been observed that it is well-settled that it is not open to the committee of management of an institution or its office bearers to hold an election after the term of the committee of management has come to an end. Any order of the D.I.O.S. attesting the signature of the Manager of such invalid committee of management cannot cure the Invalidity in the constitution of the committee. The term of the committee of management is three years one month and the right to hold the election of the committee of management comes to an end on the expiry of the said period and any election held by the committee of management after the expiry of the period would be illegal. The term of the committee of management cannot be treated to have been extended by its remaining in effective control of the institution and that would not empower the committee of management to hold the election after expiry of the term of the committee of management as provided under the scheme of administration. The validity and term of the committee of management has to be determined in accordance with the provisions contained in the scheme of administration. The observations made in the aforesaid decisions are not of universal application. They are to be confined in the light of the facts of each case. The above decisions presuppose the existence of a provision in the scheme of administration that after the expiry of the period of 3 years and one month, the term of the committee of management shall 'automatically' come to an end and that the office bearers of the committee of management shall cease to function. It is in the wake of this specific provision in the scheme of administration that the old committee of management ceases to exist after the specified period and since the cessation is automatic, the old committee after the expiry of its term cannot hold elections. Law laid down in the aforesaid decisions would not apply to the facts of the present case as the provisions made in the scheme of administration are entirely different.
5. In the scheme of administration, a copy of which is Annexure-1 to the writ petition, which is applicable in the instant case, it is provided in clause (8) that the elections of the members of the committee of management shall be held 'after three years' in the manner prescribed. In clause (30), it has been mentioned that the period of the committee of management shall be three years and that the particular year of the committee shall be reckoned w.e.f. 1st April to 31st March next. Except for these two provisions in clauses (8) and (30), there is no other provision with regard to the term of the committee of management. A bare reading of these two clauses would indicate that the term of the committee of management would be three years and election shall be held after three years. There is no specific provision in the scheme of administration that after the expiry of the term of the committee of management, its office bearers shall automatically cease to function. Therefore, by necessary implication, the period of committee of management shall continue in the present case till such time the period of three years of the committee of management has expired and fresh elections thereafter take place. The intention appears to be that within a reasonable time after the expiry of period of three years, elections should be held to constitute a new committee of management. The provision of automatic cessation of the old committee of management is conspicuously missing in the scheme of administration, Annexure-1 to the writ petition, for this one simple reason, the various decisions, referred to above, relied upon Sri Bhargava are not squarely applicable to the facts of the present case.
6. Sri S. S. Chauhan, learned counsel for the respondents placed reliance on two decisions of this Court. In Navin Kumar Singh v. D.I.O.S., Budaun and others. 1997 (I) AWC 7676, the scheme of administration postulated that the term of the office bearers and elected members of the committee would be three years with strings attached that the term of each of the office bearers of the Committee of Management would prolong till elections of its successor provided that such term would not extend beyond two months. In that case, the term of the old committee of management expired on 11th January, 1995, The process of election for constituting a new committee had been initiated earlier vide notice published in 'Dainik Jagran' on 13th December, 1994 and according to the said schedule, 14.2.1995 was the date fixed for filing nominations. 20.2.1995 was the date fixed for scrutiny, 14.2.1995 was the date for withdrawal and 1.3.1995 for polling, i.e., after the expiry of the term of the old committee of management. For certain reasons, the earlier schedule as notified on 13.12.1994 could not be adhered to and, therefore, fresh notice was published to set in motion the election process on 24.2.1995. It was held that since the election process had commenced well before the expiry of the term of the old committee of management, it would make no difference if the actual date of election, i.e., poll falls after the expiry of the period of the old committee of management. It was also observed that the various provisions about the term of the committee of management and holding of the elections are directory in nature and not mandatory. If the elections, it was further observed, are held within a reasonable time even though after the expiry of term of the old committee of management, they cannot be treated to have been vitiated and have to be recognised as valid ones. The observations made in Navin Kumar's case (supra), squarely apply to the facts of the present case. In the instant case, election process admittedly commenced on 7.7.1997 which was a date prior to the last date, i.e., 19.8.1997 on which the term of the old committee of management was to 'expire. The elections were held after five days of the expiry of the term of the old committee of management though the election process had commenced before the expiry of the term. In view of the holding in Navin Kumar's case (supra], the elections held on 25.8.1997 cannot be said to be illegal.
7. The other case relied upon by Sri Chauhan is Committee of Management Mubarakpur Inter College, Mubarakpur, District Azamgarh and another v. Regional Dy. Director of Education (Secondary) Azamgarh and others, (1997) 1 UPLBEC 412. In that case, the term of the last committee of management expired in the month of July 1993. The new committee of management was constituted and its manager elected on 11.9.1994. Recognition was granted to the new committee of management on 3.10.1994. It was observed that the outgoing committee of management could be treated to be functional in law even after the expiry of the period of tenure provided therefor in the approved scheme of administration and election having been held complying with the conditions as referred to in the case of Committee of Management Aley Ahmad Girls Inter College and another v. Dy. Director of Education, Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 10869 of 1996, decided on 15.11.1996 could be recognised for the administrative purposes. It was held that the election was held in the presence of an observer sent by District Inspector of Schools (for short D.I.O.S.) and, therefore, there was nothing wrong in recognising the new committee of management for administrative purposes even though it was elected after the expiry of the term of old committee. In the Instant case loo, the elections were held on 25.8.1997 in the presence of an observer appointed by the D.I.O.S.
8. The committee of management elected on 25.8.1997 and which has been recognised on 25.9.1997 by attesting the signatures of Jagdish Prasad Varshney, the newly elected Manager, cannot be said to be illegal. The grounds of attack canvassed on behalf of the petitioners are not attracted in the present case, for the reasons stated above.
9. In the result, I find that the present writ petition is devoid of any merits and substance. It is accordingly dismissed without any order as to costs.