The charge-sheet must be issued in accordance with Rule 118 of Delhi School Education Rules, 1973, and the concept of deemed approval of charge-sheet is not recognized.

JUDGMENT

Jyoti Singh, J. (Oral)--Present writ petition has been filed by the Petitioner quashing the impugned charge-sheet dated 18.01.2020 issued by Dayanand Model School (hereinafter referred to as `the School')/Respondent No.4 with all consequential benefits.

2. Petitioner was holding the post of Vice Principal of the School which is an unaided School being managed by Respondents No.3 to 5. Pursuant to a preliminary inquiry report dated 15.11.2019, Petitioner was placed under suspension for certain alleged lapses highlighted in the report. Respondents No. 4 and 5 constituted the Disciplinary Committee (`DAC') comprising of the Chairman, Manager of the School, School Representative as member, Director's nominee Mr. Vikas Kulshreshtha and Ms. Anu Gera, Head of a different School, nominated by DoE as member of DAC and on 08.01.2020, the first meeting of DAC was held. Copy of the draft charge-sheet was supplied to the members for their perusal but final decision was not taken and the meeting was postponed to 13.01.2020. Second meeting of DAC was convened on 13.01.2020, however, DE nominee and Ms. Gera were not available and meeting was rescheduled for 18.01.2020, on which date meeting was convened but DE nominee and Ms. Gera could not attend. Minutes of the meeting dated 18.01.2020 read as follows:

"......since both the representatives of DOE have expressed their inability to attend today's meeting in view of Election duty and personal reasons respectively and have returned the draft charge-sheet of Ms. Anjna Luthra, HOS (suspended) without any suggestion/remarks on it and hence, deemed as approved by them."

3. Acting on the deemed approval, charge-sheet was served on the Petitioner on 18.01.2020. In response, Petitioner sought certain documents and records of the meeting as well as details of the members constituting the DAC. While certain documents were supplied to the Petitioner, the minutes of the meeting or the constitution of the DAC was not furnished to her. Challenging the suspension, Petitioner filed a writ petition in this Court being W.P.(C) 10523/2019, however, in the meantime, DoE directed the School to revoke the suspension order and allow the Petitioner to join as Head of School (`HOS')/Vice Principal within three days.

4. Petitioner avers that she could not file reply to the charge-sheet on account of Pandemic COVID-19 and it was only on 03.07.2020 that she was able to respond to the charge-sheet. According to the Petitioner, DAC was not constituted in accordance with Rule 118 of Delhi School Education Rules, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as `Rules 1973') and therefore, she approached this Court challenging the charge-sheet. By a detailed order dated 28.08.2020, this Court stayed further inquiry proceedings on a prima facie view that the charge-sheet was not in accordance with Rule 118 and the interim order continues till date.

5. Learned counsel for the Petitioner contends that the charge-sheet is illegal as the same has not been issued in accordance with Rule 118 of Rules 1973. The Rule requires that DAC in respect of an employee of a recognised private school shall consist of Chairman of the Managing Committee of the School, Manager of the School, Director's nominee and a Teacher who is a Member of the Managing Committee as well as Head of the School except where the inquiry is against the HOS, in which case Head of another School will be nominated by DoE. It is submitted that in the present case, the minutes of the meeting dated 18.01.2020 reflect that DE nominee as well as Ms. Gera were not present in the meeting and thus there were no deliberations for approval of the charge-sheet. The concept of deemed approval of charge-sheet put forth by the School is unknown to law and the charge-sheet not having been approved by all members of the DAC in consonance with Rule 118 deserves to be quashed. Reliance is placed on the judgment of the Supreme Court in Union of India and Others vs. B.V. Gopinath, (2014) 1 SC