The appointment of a teacher to an unsanctioned post is void; creation of posts follows governmental policy decisions based on financial constraints and student enrollment as mandated by statutory regulations.

JUDGMENT

[W.A.Nos.1419 and 1423 of 2025]

Muralee Krishna S., J.

W.A.No.1423 of 2025 is filed by the petitioner in W.P.(C)No.32678 of 2023, and W.A.No.1419 of 2025 is filed by the petitioner in W.P.(C)No.3934 of 2025, under Section 5 (i) of the Kerala High Court Act , 1958, challenging the common judgment dated 13.05.2025 passed by the learned Single Judge in those writ petitions. The parties and documents to these writ appeals are referred to in their status as in W.P.(C)No.32678 of 2023, unless otherwise stated.

2. Going by the pleadings in the respective writ petitions, the petitioner in W.P.(C)No.32678 of 2023, who is the appellant in the corresponding writ appeal, is working as HSST (Junior) Malayalam in Abdurahiman Nagar Higher Secondary School (the ‘School’ for short). The petitioner in W.P.(C)No.3934 of 2025, who is the 4^th respondent in W.P.(C)No.32678 of 2023, is the Manager of the said School. The School was upgraded as a Higher Secondary School in the year 2010 by sanctioning two batches, consisting of Science and Humanities. An additional batch of Commerce was sanctioned in the academic year 2011-12. Thereafter, an additional batch of Computer Science was granted as per the Government order dated 31.07.2014. The sanction was subsequently finalised as per Ext.P1 Government order dated 24.11.2014. Pursuant to the sanctioning of the additional batches, the total number of periods in Malayalam have arose to 36 from the academic year 2015-16 onwards, for which one HSST (Malayalam) and one HSST (Jr) in Malayalam is permissible. At that time, one HSST (Malayalam) alone was in the School.

2.1. After the commencement of the additional batches during the academic year 2014-15, the petitioner in W.P.(C)No.32678 of 2023 was appointed as HSST (Jr) Malayalam in the School on 29.06.2017 by the Manager as per Ext.P2 order dated 29.06.2017. Prior to Ext.P2 order of appointment, she had been engaged from 30.06.2016, and she was getting the salary on a daily wage basis. Though the petitioner was appointed as HSST (Jr) Malayalam by virtue of Ext.P2 order of appointment, her appointment has not been approved, and she has not been paid salary and allowances. Though by virtue of Ext.P4 order dated 21.08.2017, the Government created teaching and non-teaching posts including HSST and HSST (Jr) and additional batches sanctioned during the academic year 2014-15, no HSST/HSST (Jr) in Malayalam was sanctioned to the petitioner’s School for teaching Malayalam. The guest teacher post alone was sanctioned in the Malayalam subject. Consequent to Ext.P4 order, the 3^rd respondent, Regional Deputy Director, issued Ext.P5 staff fixation order dated 07.12.2017, wherein one guest teacher post alone was sanctioned in the subject Malayalam, over and above one HSST already existing in the School.

2.2. The petitioner pleads that, as per Chapter XXXII of Kerala Education Rules , 1959 (‘ KER ’ for short), if the workload of a teacher is 15 or more periods per week per subject, an HSST post has to be sanctioned. If the workload is less than 15 periods, an HSST (Jr) post is to be sanctioned. There is no provision for sanctioning guest teachers. The further restriction imposed by the Government as per Ext.P4 order in sanctioning the post of HSST (Jr) is totally against the provisions of the Rules, General Executive Order in existence and therefore the restriction now imposed to that extent is liable to be set aside. Aggrieved by the denial of approval and non-sanctioning of the post, the petitioner approached this Court by filing W.P.(C)No.41116 of 2018 and by Ext.P7 judgme