JUDGMENT :

Harish Tandon, J.:

The slew of litigations which are assigned to this Bench relate to the Constitutional validity of the provisions contained under Section 10C of the WEST BENGAL SCHOOL SERVICE COMMISSION ACT , 1997 (said Act) at the behest of the teachers appointed in a different aided school within the State assailing the order of transfer or placement of service from one school to another school. Taking aid of Section 10C of the said Act, the School Service Commission recommended the transfer of a teacher from a school to another school on the basis of the general or special order passed by the State Government necessitated in the interest of the education and/or in the interest of Public Service but till date the recommendation has not fructified into an order of transfer or placement of service to another school. Since the constitutional validity of Section 10C of the said Act is assailed in all the aforesaid matters, the assignment was made to the Division Bench to decide the aforesaid issue.

2. All the counsels representing the respective writ petitioners have categorized their arguments in two compartments firstly, by introduction of Section 10 C of the Act, the legislatures have impinged upon the condition of service which has been protected under Section 10 of the said Act; secondly, the introduction of Section 10 C into the said Act by way of an amending Act cannot apply retrospectively as it has a larger impact on varying the condition of service to their disadvantages.

3. Since the second question is intricately related to the first question, we decided to permit the respective counsels to argue the said point and for the larger interest of the teachers within the State of West Bengal, proceeded to decide the aforesaid point as well in the event the first question is answered in favour of the writ petitioners.

4. A prelude to promulgation of the said Act is required to be recapitulated in order to understand the object and purpose for which the same was enacted. Since the time immemorial the education was always considered to be an important tool of learning, excellence and shaping the moral, ethical, cultural and political life; above all building the character and maintenance of a social fabric engrained into the society and ability to take a decision in various spheres of life having an impact on the development of the country socially, economically, politically and culturally. Since the time immemorial there was an establishment the informal system of education though regarded as a most powerful tool of imparting education in early development of this country so that the citizenry of the princely State to play a very important role in a decision making process and above all rendering justices to the common people through the monarch or the decision of a king. The king used to dispense justice with the council of Ministers who are always considered to be erudite, educated, knowledgeable and abreast of the miseries and follies of the citizen of the said State. The system of education developed gradually as it is dynamic in nature necessitated by the need of the people of the State and advancement of the society in all spheres of life. The education thus inculcate not only the sense of responsibility or obligation into a citizen of a country but have a tremendous impact on its structuring the orderly society and a discipline to be inculcated in them in a more organized manner uniformly. Even during the British Era, the educational institutions were set up by several philanthropist, educationalist, philosopher and the person having a resource both economically, politically to provide such education to the citizenry of the country without having any aid or grant from the then ruling Government. Several schools were set up by such philanthropist, educationalist and the resourceful person with the avowed object of providing education to the children considering their future and their tremendous contribution in