Teaching experience in an unaffiliated college cannot be counted for the purpose of computing total years of experience as a teacher.

Satyeshwar Roy, J.

The petitioner in this application has prayed for issuance of a writ of certiorari quashing annexure 13 by which respondent no. 4 was transferred as Principal, Jhumak Mahaseth Dr. Dharmpriya Lall Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Madhubani (hereinafter to be referred to as "the College") and Annexure 16 by which annexure 13 was modified, but not with regard to respondent no. 4. Prayer has also been made for declaration that the petitioner is the Principal of the College and not the Professor in charge as described in annexure 12. The main claim of the petitioner is that her services as a teacher before the College was affiliated to the Intermediate Council shall have to be counted for the purpose of computing whether she had the requisite teaching experience for allowing her to continue as Principal after the College was made a constituent college.

2. The writ petition was heard on a number of days by a Division Bench. The Division Bench noticed that on the point whether the teaching experience of a person in a college not affiliated shall be considered for calculating total years of experience as a teacher, there are two conflicting judgments of this court. In C.W.J.C. No. 1077 of 1963; Ramawtar Prasad Agrawal and another v. Ramchandra Prasad Sharma and others, disposed of on 21st July 1971, it was held that teaching experience of a lecturer in an unaffiliated college shall have to be reckoned, whereas in Sri Chandra Deo Jha v. The State of Bihar and others, 1982 BLJ 362; it was held that such teaching experience cannot be taken into consideration. In view of these two conflicting judgment of two Division Bench of this court, the matter was referred to a larger Bench. This is how this matter has been listed before this Bench.

3. When the application was taken up for hearing, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the parties submitted that transfer of respondent no. 4 as Principal of the College has been revoked and in his place nobody has been posted as Principal. In view of this development during the pendency of this writ application, prayer of the petitioner also for quashing annexures 13 and 16 has become infructuous. The only question which remains to be decided is; whether the petitioner in the facts of this case can claim that she is entitled to continue as Principal of the College.

4. According to the petitioner, the College was established on 1.8.1971 and by Annexure 1 dated 1.9.1971, she was appointed by the then Managing Committee as Lecturer on temporary basis in the Department of Hindi for a period of six months. The post of the Principal was advertised and she applied. She was promoted temporarily by Annexure 5 to that post on 11.7.1917. The College was affiliated upto Intermediate standard by annexure 7, notification dated 6.10.1982 of the Intermediate Education Council with effect from 1.6.1981. The petitioner was said to have been confirmed as Principal in 1983. By Annexure 8, the college was affiliated upto Degree standard on 3.10.1985.

5. In the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the University, it was stated that the appointment of the petitioner as Lecturer and as Principal during the period when the College was not affiliated was of no consequence. The appointment of the petitioner as Lecturer and/or Principal was not on the basis of the recommendation/concurrence of the College Service Commission. On 11.7.1977 the date on which the petitioner was said to have been appointed as Principal she had not the requisite teaching experience and, therefore, her appointment was not valid. The factum that when the College was made a constituent College, the petitioner was working as Principal has been denied. It has been stated that she was Professor In-charge of the College.

6. The points which are involved in this writ application are :-

(A) For the purpose of computing teaching experience of a College teacher, whether the teaching experience said to have been acquired in a college which was not affili