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High Court Of Allahabad
M. Katju, J.
Ramesh Upadhya
Vs.
State Of U.P.
Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 29290 of 1990
Decided on: 18th January, 1993
EDUCATION - PRIMARY SECTION TEACHERS IN SANSKRIT INSTITUTIONS - SALARY AND BENEFITS - ENTITLEMENT - DISCRIMINATION - ARTICLE 14 OF THE CONSTITUTION - SANSKRIT AS A LANGUAGE OF RICH HERITAGE AND CULTURE - IMPORTANCE OF PRESERVING AND PROMOTING SANSKRIT - DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY - ARTICLE 351 OF THE CONSTITUTION.
Fact of the Case:
Petitioners, primary section teachers in a Sanskrit institution, sought a mandamus directing the respondents to pay them salary in regular grade with effect from 1-10-1989 and provide other consequential benefits. The institution imparted education from Class 1 to graduate level and was recognized by Sampurnand Sanskrit University, Varanasi. The primary section was duly approved by the District Inspector of Schools, Jaunpur. The petitioners received a meager salary of Rs. 250/- per month, while teachers in the Junior High School, High School, Intermediate, and Bachelor of Arts sections were paid salaries through State funds. The petitioners argued that this discrimination violated Article 14 of the Constitution.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the petitioners were being discriminated against in two ways: (1) teachers in the Sanskrit institutions from Junior High School level upto post graduate level were being paid salary through the State Government, while primary section teachers were not; and (2) primary section teachers of Sanskrit institutions were not being paid the same salary as primary section teachers of other institutions. The court held that there was no rational basis for this discrimination and that it violated Article 14 of the Constitution.
Issues: 1. Whether the discrimination in salary and benefits between primary section teachers in Sanskrit institutions and teachers in other sections of the same institution violated Article 14 of the Constitution? 2. Whether the discrimination in salary and benefits between primary section teachers of Sanskrit institutions and primary section teachers of other institutions violated Article 14 of the Constitution? 3. Whether the State had a duty to preserve and promote Sanskrit as a language of rich heritage and culture?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court held that the discrimination in salary and benefits between primary section teachers in Sanskrit institutions and teachers in other sections of the same institution violated Article 14 of the Constitution because there was no rational basis for the discrimination. 2. The court held that the discrimination in salary and benefits between primary section teachers of Sanskrit institutions and primary section teachers of other institutions violated Article 14 of the Constitution because there was no rational basis for the discrimination. 3. The court held that the State had a duty to preserve and promote Sanskrit as a language of rich heritage and culture, and that this duty included providing adequate salaries and benefits to primary section teachers in Sanskrit institutions.
Final Decision: The court allowed the writ petition and issued a mandamus directing the respondents to pay salary to the primary section teachers in Sanskrit institutions through the State as is done in the case of primary school teachers of High School and intermediate Colleges. Also, the salaries to be paid to the former must be the same as that paid to the latter, i.e. in accordance with the G.O. dated 28-2-90 and 6-9-90 as amended. The petitioners will also be entitled to other consequential benefits like group insurance, General Provident Fund, retirement benefits etc. which are being made available to the Primary section teachers in High School and Intermediate Colleges.
M. Katju, J.
1. This writ petition has been filed with a prayer for mandamus directing the respondents to pay salary to the petitioners in regular grade with effect from 1-10-1989 and to provide other consequential benefits to the petitioners. The petitioners are teachers of the primary section of Sri Alpeshwarnath Sanskrit Maha Vidyalaya, Janewar, Fatehganj, Jaunpur which is a recognised Sanskrit Institution imparting education for the primary section. Junior High School, Purva Madhyama (High School), Uttar Madhyama (Intermediate) and Shastri (B.A.) sections. The Maha Vidyalaya is thus Imparting education from Class 1 upto graduate level and it is a recognised institution affiliated to Sampurnand Sanskrit University, Varanasi. The teachers of the institution teaching in the Junior High School Section, High School, Intermediate and Bachelor of Arts Section are paid salary through State funds i.e. by the Slate Government. It is only teachers teaching in the primary section (such as the petitioners) who are not paid salary through State funds, and they are paid salary through the private resources of the institution. The institution is on the maintenance grant in aid list of the State Government. The primary section of the institution has been duly approved by the District Inspector of Schools, Jaunpur on 23-4-1958. In this connection the certificate of the District Inspector of Schools. Jaunpur dated 17-3-1971 is Annexare-2 to the petition. The certificate of the Banaras Sanskrit Vishwa Vidyalaya stating that the institution recognised upto B.A. level (Shastri) is Annexure-3 to the petition. The petitioners who are teaching in the primary section are getting salary of only Rs. 250/- per month as is evident from the certificate of the Manger dated 2-7-1990 (Annexure-4 to the petition). The State does not pay salary to the teachers of the primary section but it only gives some nominal compensation as is evident from Annexures-5 and 6. This compensation is clearly not sufficient to pay adequate salary to the teachers of the primary section. For example in the petitioners' Institution the compensation grant for the year 1986-87 was Rs. 2844/- for the year 1987-88 was Rs.2914/- and for 1988-89 was again Rs. 2914/-.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioners could not tell me whether there are any other teachers in the primary section apart from the two petitioners, but even of there are no other such teachers the compensation would give the petitioner about only Rs. 125/- per month, which in these hard days of inflation is next to nothing. The petitioners have been teaching since 1972-73 i.e. for 20 years. Sanskrit is a great language of this country and to pay a salary of Rs. 250/- per month to a Sanskrit teachers is an intolerable insult to a great language and the teachers of such a great language. In this connection it has been stated in paragraph 10 of the writ petition that by a government order dated 6-9-1989, 339 institutions upto the level of High School and Intermediate in U.P. were approved by the State Government for payment of salary under the payment of Salaries Act 1971. A true copy of the G.O. dated 6-9-1989 is Annexure-7 to the petition. The petitioners have stated that in these 339 institutions teachers in Primary Section are now being paid by the State Government Salaries in accordance with the G.O. dated 28-2-1990 (which has prescribed the grade of Rs. 1100-1710 for high school trained teachers and of Rs. 950-1325 for junior high school trained teachers and the G.O. dated 6-9-90 (which has prescribed Rs. 850 P.M. for untrained teachers) but the teachers of primary sections of the Sanskrit institutions have not been given the same benefit, and thus they have been discriminated against. The petitioners made representations to the authorities as stated in paragraph 12 of the writ petition, but to no avail. A counter affidavit has been filed. In paragraph-4 there of it has been stated that the demand of the petitio
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