IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE Present:

The Hon’ble Justice Rai Chattopadhyay WPA 15931 of 2017 Dipak Kumar Duley Vs.

State of West Bengal & Ors.

For the Petitioner : Mr. Sourav Prasanna Mukherjee :

For the State Mr. Pinaki Dhole : Mr. Rajat Dutta Heard on : 23/04/2025 Judgment on : 23/04/2025 Rai Chattopadhyay, J. :-

1) An order of the District Inspector of Schools, Secondary Education, Bankura dated February 10, 2017 is under challenge in the instant writ petition.

2) The writ petitioner is the Assistant Teacher of Purandarpur High School, Bankura in Social Science group. He has been recommended by the West Bengal Regional School Service Commission (Western Region), Bankura for appointment as a Pass Graduate category Teacher on January 25, 2001 and according to the same has been appointed in the said school as a Pass Graduate category Assistant Teacher on February 5, 2001.

3) With permission of the Managing Committee of the School, the petitioner took admission in M.Sc. course for the subject Geography, in January 2009, through distance course at Vinayak Mission University. The academic session was for 2009 to 2011. The petitioner has ultimately qualified and obtained M.Sc. degree in Geography subject through correspondence course in 2011.

4) Upon enhancement of his qualification to the Masters degree, he therefore, has prayed for grant of higher pay scale to him, meant for Post Graduate qualified Assistant Teachers.

5) Such prayer of the petitioner has been ultimately turned down by the respondent/District Inspector of Schools, Secondary Education, Bankura by dint of the said impugned order dated February 10, 2017.

The grounds thereof maybe summarized as below:-

 The petitioner was appointed on recommendation of the School Service Commission as a Pass Graduate category Teacher.

 Therefore, in terms of Section 14(2) of the West Bengal Schools (Control of Expenditure) Act, 2005, the petitioner would not be eligible for grant of any other pay scale than for the category of teachers in which he has been initially appointed that is, Pass Graduate category of teachers.

 That the petitioner did not take prior permission from the District Inspector of Schools before enrolling himself for enhancement of his qualification; thus the petitioner has flouted the conditions prescribed under GO No. 593-SE(B) of 27.11.2007 to be eligible for grant of higher pay scale, pursuant to higher qualification, if any.

 Finally, that the petitioner has taken part in the examination either by taking medical leave or casual leave but not study leave, which is not promisable under the law.

6) For the reasons as above, the petitioner’s prayer for grant of higher pay scale, pursuant to his higher qualification, has been declined by the respondent/District Inspector of Schools, Secondary Education, Bankura. Hence this writ petition.

7) Mr. Mukherjee has represented the writ petitioner. Mr. Mukherjee has strongly relied upon the judgment of the Hon’ble Larger Bench of this Court reported in Utpal Kanti Karan Vs. State of West Bengal &

Ors. reported in 2024 SCC OnLine Cal 1274. In particular, he has relied on Paragraph 273 (a) thereof which speaks as follows:-

“273.

a). Enhancement of pay on acquisition of higher qualification during the service career is dependent upon the relevant rules operating at the time of acquisition of higher qualification and cannot be claimed as a matter of right in absence of Rules.

For example, a teacher joined the school with a pass graduate degree and during his service career the teacher enhanced his qualification and claimed higher scale of pay on the basis of the said degree. The said claim has to be decided on the basis of the relevant rules existing at the time of his acquiring higher qualification. If he has joined the school with a pass graduate degree after the government circular dated 12th February, 1999 he would not be entitled to post graduate scale of pay unless the teacher is cove