Point of Law: Rule 10 (ab) of Part II KS & SSR had to be read along with Special Rules that prescribed qualifications for post of Professor and when so read, qualifying teaching experience for post had to be seen as teaching experience gained after acquiring PG qualification.

JUDGMENT :

(A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, J.)

1. As these O.P.(KAT)'s arise from the common order dated 30.3.2017 in O.A.No.2396 of 2016 before the Kerala Administrative Tribunal, they are taken up together for consideration and disposed by this common judgment.

The Facts in Brief:

The applicant before the Tribunal Dr. Shahinamole S. was an Associate Professor in the Department of Prasuti Tantra and Striroga in the Government Ayurveda College, Kannur. She approached the Tribunal aggrieved by the decision of the Departmental Promotion Committee [DPC] that convened to consider the candidates for promotion to the post of Professor to a vacancy that arose with effect from 26.9.2014. The DPC had decided to consider the candidature of the applicant along with Dr. S. Padmaja Devi and Dr. Asha Sreedhar, who, according to the applicant, were not qualified in terms of the Special Rules in force for promotion to the post of Professor in the Department of Prasuti Tantra and Striroga. The Special Rules in force as on the date of arising of the vacancy was the one notified in the Kerala Gazette on 4.8.2007 [Annexure A1]. As per the said Rules, the post of Professor [Prasuti Tantra and Striroga] was to be filled by promotion from among Reader (Associate Professor) [Prasuti Tantra and Striroga] and, in the absence of qualified persons for promotion, by direct recruitment. Promotion to the category of Professor is based on cadre seniority in the concerned Department and the candidate is to be chosen from a select list. The qualifications prescribed for promotion to the post of Professor under the Special Rules read as follows:

Notes 1, 3 and 7 below Rule 5 are important, and they read as follows:

Note:-1. In accordance with these Special Rules, Postgraduate Degree in the concerned subject has been made compulsory qualification for appointment by promotion and by direct recruitment to the posts of Professor, Reader (Associate Professor) and Senior Lecturer (Assistant Professor).

3. The teaching staff in service as on the date of coming in force of Special Rules and who have been recruited before 1-7-1989 shall be exempted from acquiring the PG Degree qualification.

7. Teachers in service and recruited after 1-7-1989 but recruited before 31-1-1998 and do not possess the PG Degree qualification in the concerned subject or in allied subject shall be given five more years time with effect from 31-1-2003 to acquire the prescribed qualification.

2. The career paths of Dr. Shahinamole S., Dr. Asha Sreedhar and Dr. S. Padmaja Devi in the Department of Prasuti Tantra and Striroga can be tabulated as follows: