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IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA, CUTTACK
Dr. B.R. Sarangi, J.
Girish Chandra Tripathy - Appellant
Versus
State Of Odisha & Anr. - Respondents
W.P.(C) No. 7103 of 2018
Decided On : 29-01-2019
State Award - Teachers - Orissa Education Act 1969, Section 3(f), Section 3(p), Section 4, Section 5, Section 6, Section 6-A, Section 6-B - The court quashed the resolution dated 14.03.2018 issued by the Government in School and Mass Education Department fixing guidelines for State Award to teachers, excluding the teachers of the recognized institutions, as it was found to be unconstitutional and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioner, an Assistant Teacher in a recognized institution, filed a petition to quash the resolution dated 14.03.2018, which restricted the State Award only to teachers working in government or government-aided institutions, thereby excluding teachers from recognized institutions. The petitioner argued that the resolution was illegal, arbitrary, discriminatory, unreasonable, and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the resolution dated 14.03.2018 was unconstitutional, as it discriminated against teachers of recognized institutions and violated Article 14 of the Constitution of India. The court also held that the policy decision to exclude teachers from recognized institutions from the State Award was unfair and arbitrary.
Issues: The issues involved in the case were the legality and constitutionality of the resolution dated 14.03.2018, the discriminatory nature of the policy decision, and the violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the resolution dated 14.03.2018, which excluded teachers from recognized institutions from the State Award, was unconstitutional and violated Article 14 of the Constitution of India. The court also emphasized that the policy decision to exclude teachers from recognized institutions was unfair and arbitrary.
Final Decision: The court quashed the resolution dated 14.03.2018 and the follow-up actions taken pursuant to the resolution, including the advertisement inviting applications for the State Award. The State authorities were directed to frame guidelines for the State Award to teachers of all educational institutions, including government, non-government, and recognized, by affording equal opportunity to all categories of teachers imparting education to the students, in accordance with the law.
JUDGMENT
B.R.Sarangi, J. - The petitioner, who is at present working as an Assistant Teacher in B.R. High School, Belpahar, has filed this application to quash the resolution dated 14.03.2018 in Annexure-3 issued by the Government of Odisha in School and Mass Education Department fixing guidelines for State Award to teachers, and further seeks to quash the advertisement published in Odia daily "Dharitri" by the Director, Secondary Education, Odisha in Annexure-4, pursuant to resolution dated 14.03.2018, inviting applications for State Award 2017 only from the teachers working in an institution, which is either government or government aided, thereby depriving the teachers working in a recognized institution.
2. The factual matrix of the case, in hand, is that the petitioner, having acquired trained graduate qualification in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, was appointed as a teacher in 1998. Since then, he has been rendering service in different schools within the State of Odisha. At present, he is working as an Assistant Teacher in B.R. High School, Belpahar, a recognized institution, situated in a remote area of the State. The petitioner has been imparting teaching in the said institution since 2014, as a result of which its students have been performing well in the school examinations and different science quiz competitions and are recipients of Pathani Samanta Ganita Scholarship, NRTS and other scholarships consistently every year.
3. The petitioner himself is also a recipient of State Award for his excellent work in environmental protection and teaching. The Government of India in the Ministry of Human Resource Development Department of School Education and Literacy, as well as the Government of Odisha in School and Mass Education Department by different orders issued from time to time allowed the teachers of recognized primary, upper primary and secondary educational institutions to be eligible for State Award on the basis of their contribution, sacrifice and hard work. The selection of a teacher for State Award is made on the basis of principles and guidelines and assessment of marks on his/her performance.
4. As the matter stood thus, opposite party no.1 issued resolution no.5313/SME dated 14.03.2018 by revising the earlier scheme for State Award restricting it only to a teacher working in an institution, which is either government or government aided, thereby depriving the teachers working in a recognized institution like that of the petitioner from applying for State Award, in spite of the fact that they are otherwise eligible as per the terms and conditions of the resolution. Pursuant to such resolution dated 14.03.2018, opposite party no.2 issued advertisement, which was published in Odia daily "Dharitri", inviting applications from intending teachers for State Award. As the petitioner is rendering service in a recognized institution, he has been deprived of making application for State Award, pursuant to the advertisement issued in Odia newspaper "Dharitri", in view of resolution dated 14.03.2018, as it is only confined to a teacher working in an institution, which is either government or government aided. Hence, this application.
5. Mr. Sanjeev Udgata, learned counsel for the petitioner emphatically submitted that the resolution dated 14.03.2018 issued by opposite party no.1 depriving the school teachers working in the institutions other than the government from applying for the State Award is illegal, arbitrary, discriminatory, unreasonable and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. It is contended that the resolution dated 14.03.2018 restricting the State Award, which is a mark of recognition contribution, sacrifice and hard work of a teacher, only to a teacher working in an institution, which is either government or government aided, is not founded on an intelligible differentia having rational nexus to the object sought to be achieved. Thereby, the classification made in the resolution itself
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