Teachers appointed in minority institutions are exempt from passing the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) as per settled legal precedents.

ORDER

This Writ Petition has been filed to call for the records of the third respondent in his return order A.Thi.Mu.No.93/A2/2018 dated 10.10.2018 and quash the same and also direct the respondents 1 to 4 to grant approval of the petitioner's appointment as Secondary Grade Assistant Teacher (Urdu) in the 5th respondent Minority Aided School.

2. Heard Ms.Sonia Glory, learned counsel for the petitioner, Mrs.P.Rajarajeswari, learned Government Advocate for the respondents 1 to 4 and perused the materials available on record.

3. The petitioner has been appointed as Secondary Grade Assistant Teacher (Urdu) on 10.07.2016 on the vacancy arose due to the promotion of one A.Munira Begam on 01.06.2016. On 04.07.2016, the fifth respondent sent a proposal to the third respondent seeking approval for the appointment of the petitioner for the fifth respondent minority school and it was returned by the third respondent on 10.10.2018 for want of pass in TET.

4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that since the fifth respondent School is a minority institution, the appointees in the fifth respondent School are exempted from passing TET.

5. The learned Government Advocate for the respondents 1 to 4 submitted that the request of the petitioner will be considered as per the direction of the Division Bench of this Court given in W.A.(MD).No.225 of 2019 etc., batch dated 19.04.2019.

6. However, the legal position on the requirement of TET eligibility for the teachers appointed in minority institutions have been settled by the judgment of the Division Bench of this Court held in W.A.Nos.313 of 2022 etc. batch (The Directorate of School Education, Chennai and Others Vs. M.Velayutham and Another) in its order dated 02.06.2023. In the said judgment, it has been held as under:

"7. In the mean while, the legal position as to whether TET qualification is mandate for the Teachers appointed in the minority institutions have been settled by the Division Bench of this Court in W.A.No.313 of 2022 etc., batch, by its order dated 02.06.2023. In the said judgment, the following legal position have been crystallized under paragraph Nos.71.1, 72 and 73 as to whether TET is mandatory for the Teachers in minority school. The same is extracted hereunder:

“WHETHER TET IS A NECESSARY MANDATE FOR TEACHERS APPOINTED IN MINORITY SCHOOLS:

71.1. A perusal of the orders impugned in the writ petitions leading to these writ appeals would indicate that the fact that the teachers, in respect of whom approval of appointment was sought for by the school, did not possess TET pass eligibility was not a ground for refusal for grant of appointment approval, nor was it an issued raised before the Learned Single Judge at the time of disposal of the writ petitions. Only in the writ appeals, the State Government has raised an additional ground that the teachers whose appointment approval was sought for, did not possess TET. Notwithstanding the same, it is hereby clarified that by virtue of the judgment of the Constitution Bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Pramati Educational and Cultural Trust & Ors. v. Union of India, [(2014) 8 SCC 1], wherein it was held that the RTE Act, 2009 insofar as it applies to minority schools, aided or unaided, covered under Article 30(1) is ultravires the Constitution, meaning thereby that the 2009 Act will not apply to minority schools, the eligibility of TET pass as required for appointment of teachers in non-minority schools, will not apply to minority schools. In other words, the approval of appointment of teachers in minority schools, both aided and unaided, cannot be refused or rejected on the ground that they do not possess a pass in TET. Further this specific issue is also pending consideration before the Supreme Court and the law laid down by the Supreme Court in Pramati Educational and Cultural Trust, cited supra, holds the field as on today.

For these reasons, the order of the Learned Judge in the writ petitions is affirmed and the above fou