JUDGMENT :

Heard Mr. M.R. Khandakar, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. U. Sarma, learned counsel for the respondents in the Secondary Education Department.

2. The writ petitioner Abdul Awal was appointed as an Assistant Teacher in the Namergaon High School as per the order of the Inspector of Schools, DDC, Dhubri dated 20.02.2004 and in the order of appointment, his qualification is stated as P.U passed. The services of some of the other teachers of Namergaon High School were provincialised under the Assam Venture Educational Institution (Provincialisation of Services) Act, 2011 (in short Act of 2011). Being aggrieved, the petitioner instituted WP(C) No. 581/2016, which was given a final consideration by the order dated 05.12.2017 by providing as extracted:-

“Considering the above, the impugned order dated 06.01.2016 passed by the Director of Secondary Education, Assam is hereby set aside and quashed as the Director while issuing the impugned speaking order dated 06.01.2016 did not consider the provisions of Section 4(3) of the said 2011 in its proper perspective during the time when the said 2011 Act was in force.

Since the said 2011 Act is no longer in force now and the 2017 Act noted above has been brought into force, the Director of Secondary Education, Assam shall no w reconsider the case of the petitioner in terms of the provisions of said 2017 Act for provincialisation of his services in terms of the order dated 19.11.2015 passed earlier in WP(C) No.6695/2014 and shall pass a speaking order afresh within a period of 4 (four) months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of 2017:GAU-AS:13052 this order to be furnished by the petitioner.

Needless to say, that the Director of Secondary Education Assam shall intimate the outcome of his speaking order to the petitioner to be passed as directed above.”

3. A reading of the order dated 05.12.2017 makes it discernible that the claim of the petitioner for provincialisation under the Act of 2011 was discarded inasmuch as, the said Act was no longer in force when the order was delivered and accordingly, the respondents were required to consider the claim of the petitioner for provincialisation under the Assam Education (Provincialisation) of Services of Teachers and Re-Organization of Educational Institution Act, 2017 (in short Act of 2017). In the circumstance, the order dated 08.03.2022 was passed by the Director of Secondary Education, Assam, which apparently also refers to the order dated 05.12.2017 of the Court in WP(C) No. 581/2016 and also accepts the fact that there is a requirement to reconsider the case of the petitioner for provincialisation under the Act of 2017. The order dated 08.03.2022 is extracted as below:-

“Seen & perused the Order issued by this office vide No. Pc/CC/5/2015/242, dated 06-02-2018 and seen &perused the order of the Hon’ble Gauhati High ourt dated 05-12-2017 passed in WP(C) No.581/2016 filed by Abdul Awal, Asstt. Teacher of Namargaon High School, Dhubri. The Hon’ble Court has directed the DSE, Assam to reconsider the case of the petitioner in terms of the New Act namely “The Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re-organization of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017.

Section 4(2)(iii) of “The Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re-organization of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017 as Amended 2018”, states that “The teachers/tutor must have rendered at least six year of continuous service as on 01-01-2017 from the date of joining in the concerned venture educational institution which must be on 31-12-2010 or prior the date”. The Writ Petitioner, Abdul Awal had passed B.A examination in the year 2016 from Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University. Although the petitioner joined the school prior to 31.12.2010 he acquired the required eligibility criteria in the year 2016. His eligibility criteria can be counted from the date of passing B.A examination 2016. Hence his service cannot be cons