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High Court Of Calcutta
Mahemmad Habeeb Shams Ansari
SHREE AHINSA PRACHAR SAMITY - Appellant
Versus
APPEAL COMMITTEE - Respondent
W. P. 1975 Of 1996
Decided On : 12/03/1998
JURISDICTION OF APPEAL COMMITTEE - MINORITY INSTITUTION - NON-COMPLIANCE WITH REGULATIONS - VALIDITY OF IMPUGNED ORDER
Fact of the Case:
The petitioner, a society administering a school, filed a writ petition challenging the order of the Appeal Committee, which allowed the appeals of the teachers and directed the school to allow them to sign the attendance register and pay their salaries. The petitioner contended that the Appeal Committee lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeals since the school was a minority institution and that the order was vitiated due to non-compliance with the regulations governing the Appeal Committee's proceedings.
Finding of the Court:
The court held that the Appeal Committee had jurisdiction to hear the appeals since the school was not accorded the status of a minority institution and the special rules framed by the State under Rule 33 of the Rules for Management of Recognised Non-Government Institutions (Aided and Unaided) Rules, 1969 (1969 Rules) were not applicable to the school. The court further held that the non-compliance with the regulations governing the Appeal Committee's proceedings did not vitiate the impugned order since the provisions requiring a further enquiry were not attracted in the absence of a previous enquiry in a disciplinary proceeding against the teachers.
Issues: 1. Whether the Appeal Committee had jurisdiction to hear the appeals of the teachers? 2. Whether the impugned order was vitiated due to non-compliance with the regulations governing the Appeal Committee's proceedings?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The jurisdiction of the Appeal Committee to hear appeals is not confined to appeals against orders of termination of service or discharge alone. The appeal can be preferred by teachers or other employees questioning the action of the school authorities where the teachers were forciably prevented from signing the attendance register and obstructing them from working. 2. The non-compliance with the provisions of Regulation 7 (1) (b) would not vitiate the impugned order nor render the same as without jurisdiction. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners has accordingly to be rejected.
Final Decision: The court dismissed the writ petition, holding that the Appeal Committee had jurisdiction to hear the appeals and that the impugned order was not vitiated due to non-compliance with the regulations.
( 1 ) THE present writ application is filed by the Society administering the school in question. The petitioner No. 1 is registered as a Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 and the petitioner No. 2 is the Secretary of the said Society. It is avered in the application that the object of petitioner No. 1 Society inter alia, as follows;"to establish, maintain and run a Vidyalaya to be named Shree Digambar Jain Vidyalaya and other institutions for imparting education in literature, science, commerce, industry, fine arts and other useful knowledge including Digambar Jain religion. "
( 2 ) PURSUANT to the aforesaid object, it is stated, that the petitioner No. 1 founded and established Shree Digambar Jain Vidyalaya in the year 1956 and Shree Digambar Jain Balika Vidyalaya in the year 1960. In the instant writ petition, we are concerned with Shri Digambar Jain Balika Vidyalaya and for the sake of convenience, it is hereinafter referred to as the school in question.
( 3 ) THE petitioners claim that the society is founded and established by Jains and that Historically, Philosophically and in terms of Customs, usage, dogma, doctrine, objects, forms, methods and ritual of worship, pantheon of Tirthankaras, epistemology, cosmology, cosmogony, ethics, places of pilgrimage and in myriad other ways, Jainism has always been a distinct religion and that its followers constitute a significant minority in India.
( 4 ) IT is the further claim of the petitioners that in the country as a whole and in all the States, Jains have the status of minority community on the basis of the census report. The entire population of Jains which includes the Digambar Jain community in India, it is stated, is hardly one percent of the total population of the country and so far as the State of West Bengal is concerned, the said percentage is even less.
( 5 ) FOR the management and administration of the said schools including the school in question which have been founded by the said community a separate written Constitution/rules for management and administration of the said schools was framed and forwarded to the Department of Education, Government of West Bengal for necessary action in accordance with the Rule 33 of the Rules for Management of Recognised Non-Government Institutions (Aided and Unaided) Rules, 1969 (for short 1969 Rules) framed under the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education Act, 1963 (for short the Act. ).
( 6 ) THE petitioners claim that the State Government had already approved special rules for the management and administration of Shree Jain Swetambar Terapanthy Vidyalaya Society and Shree Jain Vidyalaya, Calcutta, two Swetambar Jain Schools founded and administered by Swetambar Jain Society under Rule 33 of 1969 Rules, treating them as minority institutions. There is no justification, it is contended, for the respondent No. 7 herein not approving the special rules in respect of the petitioner No. 1 Society and according the schools managed by it, with the status of minority institutions.
( 7 ) ACCORDING to the petitioners although 20 (twenty) years have elapsed since request was made by the petitioners for approving the constitution/special rules but no action has been taken thereon as yet by the State. The petitioners Society, however, in the meanwhile have been following the Rules framed by it for administering the said schools.
( 8 ) THE foremost relief prayed for in the present writ application is for a declaration that the petitioner No. 1 and the institutions founded and administered by it are minority institutions entitled to protection as guaranteed under Articles 29 and 30 of the Constitution of India and for a direction to the State of West Bengal, respondent No. 7 herein to approve in accordance with the Regulation 33 of the 1969 Rules, the constitution/rules of the petitioner No. 1 Society.
( 9 ) THE petitioners have also sought a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing the order p
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