Point of Law: Doctrine of legitimate expectation is founded on principle of reasonableness and fairness.

ORDER :

As both these writ petitions are filed with a similar grievance and seeking similar relief, the same are taken up together analogously and being disposed of by this common judgment and order.

2. It is the cancellation of provincialisation as Teachers of Higher Secondary Schools, which is the subject matter of challenge. However, before going to the grounds of such challenge, it would be convenient to have the facts of the cases recorded in brief.

3. Shri Prafulla Kumar Nath is the petitioner in WP(C)/260/2015. The case projected is that he was appointed as the Subject Teacher in the year 1997 in the subject of History at Banmukh Higher Secondary School in the district of Sivasagar, Assam. The petitioner claims that the post which he was holding was brought under the provincialization w.e.f., 01.01.2013. However, immediately thereafter the impugned order was passed on 26.12.2014 by which the appointment of the petitioner was cancelled on the ground that there was no Feasibility Report. It is the aforesaid order of cancellation of the appointment which is the subject matter of dispute in this writ petition. The petitioner also alleges that the Feasibility Report was sought for by the Principal of the School which however was not issued by the Assam Higher Secondary Education Council (AHSEC). It is the case of the petitioner that for such default, he should not be made to suffer.

4. So far as the WP(C)/746/2015 is concerned, the original petitioner was Ms. Rupjyoti Borah and was similarly appointed as subject teacher in the Gohpur Higher Secondary School in the district of Sivasagar in the subject of Banking and Management under the Commerce Stream. The services of the petitioner was provincialized w.e.f., 01.01.2013 whereafter, vide the impugned order dated 06.01.2015, the appointment was withdrawn on the ground of there being no Feasibility Report from the AHSEC. This Court was however apprised that during the pendency of this writ petition, the original petitioner, Ms. Rupjyoti Borah had passed away and was accordingly substituted by the legal heirs, namely, Ajit Borah and Ranjit Borah. It is submitted that in case the writ petition is allowed, there would be monetary benefits which may accordingly be directed to be paid to the substituted legal heirs. In view of the aforesaid background, the discussions made in this judgment would be confined mainly to the facts of WP(C)/260/2015 (Prafulla Kumar Nath).

5. On the other hand, the case projected by the respondents is that the Feasibility Report is a sinequanon for provincialization of service and in the instant case, the initial benefits were given to the petitioners by inadvertent error and upon detection of the said fact, the benefits have been withdrawn. The crux of the defence is that the petitioners not being entitled at all for such provincialization of their services, the cancellation orders are fully justified and not liable to be interfered with.

6. I have heard Shri MU Mahmud, learned counsel for the petitioners in both these writ petitions whereas the Assam Higher Secondary Education Council is represented by Shri TC Chutia, learned Standing Counsel and Shri R. Mazumdar, learned Standing Counsel is for the Education (Secondary) Department. The learned counsel for the parties have also referred to the various documents which are on record.

7. Shri Mahmud, learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that so far as the petitioner, Prafulla Kumar Nath is concerned, he was appointed as a subject teacher in History in the year 1997 in the Banmukh High School. The said school was granted permission vide a common order dated 30.03.2001 in which the name of the school in question figured at against Sl. No. 17. The aforesaid school was provincialized vide an order dated 30.05.2013 and in the list of the beneficials against the Sl. No. 5, the name of the petitioner was reflected. The petitioner also got the benefit of such provincilization whereafter on 30.06.2014, a show