IMPORTANT POINTS
Instantly Ph.D has been treated equivalent to 5 years teaching experience.
Mere mention in the title or in any provision would not suffice. Clarificatory nature of the law it must substantively be proved.
Eligibility conditions clarified, even if from an anterior date, would not affect appointments made on a possible understanding of eligibility conditions.
Vested rights created by appointment cannot be disturbed upon a later clarification.

JUDGMENT

Leave Granted.

2. The appellants are aggrieved by the order dated 28.09.2016 of the High Court of Chhattisgarh through which the writ petition filed by Surendra Kumar Singh (Respondent No. 1) seeking declaration of Ph.D. being an essential qualification for the post of Principal at the Polytechnic colleges was allowed and consequently appointment of the appellants were quashed for want of the said qualification.

FACTS

3. Respondent No. 1 started teaching as a lecturer of electrical engineering at the Govt Polytechnic College, Ambikapur on 10.11.1993 and was promoted as the Head of Department (hereinafter, “HOD”) of electrical engineering at the Govt Polytechnic, Durg from 03.03.2009. He is presently working at Govt. Polytechnic, Kabirdham with additional responsibility of Principal­in­charge. Having completed three years of service as HOD on 01.01.2012, Respondent No. 1 applied for the post of Principal in response to the process of promotion initiated by the State of Chhattisgarh (Respondent No. 2) in 2014. Along with Respondent No. 1, numerous other serving HODs (including the seven appellants herein) too participated in the selection process. Whereas Appellants No. 1 to 7 were declared successful through notification dated 25.06.2014, the 1st respondent did not figure in the selection list.

4. Respondent No. 1 being aggrieved approached the High Court, complaining that his fundamental rights stood violated as the promotion process was in contravention of the ‘Pay Scales, Service conditions and Qualifications for the Teachers and other Academic Staff in Technical Institutions (Diploma) Regulations, 2010’ (hereinafter, “2010 AICTE Regulations”). These regulations were framed by All India Council for Technical Education (Respondent No. 3, hereinafter “AICTE”) in exercise of its powers conferred under the AICTE Act, 1987 which has been enacted by Parliament with reference to Entry 66 of the Union List contained in Schedule VII of the Constitution; and is thus binding on the State of Chhattisgarh (Respondent No. 2). The ‘Chhattisgarh Technical Education (Teaching cadre­Polytechnic) (Gazetted) Service Recruitment Rules, 2014’ (hereinafter, “2014 Chhattisgarh Rules”), in so far as they allow candidates without Ph.D to be appointed as Principals, were contended to be illegal for being in contravention of the 2010 AICTE Regulations whereunder, according to respondent No. 1, Ph.D degree was a mandatory qualification for the post of Principal.

5. Respondent No. 1 butressed his superior claim highlighting that he had the requisite three­year HOD experience and there was no complaint or disciplinary enquiry pending against him. On the other hand, he urged that the appellants had been promoted though none of them was having Ph.D qualification. He further alleged several other irregularities in the selection process, including the below­ specification ACR gradings possessed by certain candidates.

Accordingly, Respondent No. 1 sought quashing of the 2014 Chhattisgarh Rules and the promotion order dated 25.06.2014; review of the proceedings conducted by the Departmental Promotion Committee and the grading awarded to him in his Annual Confidential Reports of 2012 and 2013, and further sought resultant reconsideration of his case for promotion from HOD to Principal.

6. The High Court viewed that the 2010 AICTE Regulations were binding, and relying upon a decision of the High Court of Kerala in B Ajith Kumar v. State of Kerala, (2009) 3 KLJ 563 it held that the State Government could not lower the qualification threshold. Further, the High Court interpreted the AICTE criteria to imply that Ph.D was mandatory for appointment/promotion as ‘Principal’ and any ambiguity which could plausibly have existed in the initial formulation of 2010 AICTE Regulations, had been clarified through the ‘All India Council for Technical Education (clarificati