A candidate is not eligible for appointment as Head Master/Head Mistress if he/she does not have the requisite qualification as per the recruitment regulations.

Asok Kumar Ganguly, J.: This appeal has been filed by the West Bengal Central School Service Commission impugning the judgment and order dated 18th May, 2000 passed by the learned Single Judge in W. P. No. 2030 of 2000. The relevant facts of the case out of which the present appeal arises are noted below.

2. The respondent, viz. Smt. Gita Guha (Dasgupta), filed a writ petition praying, inter alia, for a writ in the nature of Mandamus and for a direction upon the West Bengal Regional School Service Commission (Southern Region) to issue an appointment letter in her favour and treat the respondent as having been appointed as a Head Mistress on and from the date when the other successful candidates have been appointed by the said Commission and also for fixation of the scale of pay of the respondent as Head Mistress and for other consequential reliefs. The claim of the respondent is that she passed the School Final Examination in the year 1971 from the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. Thereafter, she passed the Pre-University Examination in Science stream in the year 1973 from the University of Calcutta and she also passed the B.Sc. Examination from the same University in the year 1976 and the B.Ed. Examination in the year 1978 from the same University. The respondent then switched over to the Arts stream and passed the Special B. A. Examination in the year 1987 from the University of Calcutta.

3. From the certificates, which have been disclosed in the writ petition it appears that in the year 1987, the respondent was allowed to sit in English only for the B.A. Examination and she passed in English only.

4. Thereafter, in the year 1992, the respondent obtained a degree of M.Ed. from the Himachal Pradesh University through correspondence course and also a degree of M.A. in English from the said University through the same course. Thereafter, in the year 1993, the respondent obtained a Diploma in English in Teaching Course from the Institute of English.

5. The respondent was thereafter, appointed as Assistant Teacher in the Santi Sangha Sikha Mandir Girls Juniour High School and the appointment of the respondent was approved by the District Inspector of Schools (S. E.) Calcutta with effect from 2nd April, 1986.

6. But, after obtaining M. A. degree from the Himachal Pradesh University on the basis of the correspondence course, the respondent approached the Education Directorate of the Government of West Bengal for getting her higher pay scale in terms of Memo No. 33-Edn. (E) dated 7th March, 1990. But, the attempt of the respondent was not successful and she was informed that the degree obtained from Himachal Pradesh University on the basis of the correspondence course is not recognised by the Government of West Bengal, Education Department, vide G. O. No. 904-SE (Secretary) ACCY dated 19th December, 1994. The respondent ascertained that since the said memo was subsequently set aside by this Hon'ble Court and the Government issued another Memo being C. O. No. 57-AC(ACCY) dated 27th January, 1995, her case should have been considered on the basis of the subsequent Memo. But, the grievance of the respondent is that in spite of the said Memo, her prayer for getting higher scale was not granted.

7. Being aggrieved thereby, the respondent filed another writ petition before this Hon'ble Court being W. P. No. 2690 of 1997. On such petition being filed, a learned Judge of this Court directed the authorities to allow the higher scale of pay to the petitioner after recognising her degree obtained from the said Himachal Pradesh University through correspondence course. It is the further assertion of the respondent that after the said judgment and order was delivered by a learned single Judge of this Hon'ble Court, her higher scale of pay was enhanced since the month of May 1996.

8. Thereafter, the respondent found that an advertisement has been inserted in the Newspaper on 18th January, 1999 by the West Bengal Central School Service C