(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer) Srinagar- Setting aside government's eleven-year-old cabinet decision being in“ignorance of settled legal position”, the High Court of J&K and Ladakh on Friday ruled that the five years service rendered by Rehbar-e-Taleem teachers before regularization shall not count for the purpose of fixing their seniority.
Allowing two appeals in this regard, a Division Bench of Justices Sanjeev Kumar and Sanjay Parihar set aside its single bench's verdict 31 December 2014 which had concluded that that there was nothing wrong in the Government taking a policy decision to confer the benefit of seniority upon the ReTs on their regularization with effect from the date they were initially engaged.
“As a consequence, .....the impugned provisio, to the extent it provides that“the five years service rendered by Rehbar-e-Taleem teachers before regularization shall count for the purpose of fixing their seniority” is set aside,” the Division Bench said while allowing the appeals filed by aggrieved General Line teachers through advocate Tasaduq H. Khawja.
The government vide an order on 28 April 2000 launched Rehbar-e-Taleem (ReT) Scheme which provided for engagement of Teaching Guide (ReT) to perform the teaching duties in the schools facing deficiency of teaching staff. The ReT was to be engaged initially for a period of two years which was extendable for a period of further three years subject to satisfactory performance etc of the ReT.
The ReT was entitled to a monthly honorarium of Rs. 1500 for the first two years and Rs. 2000 per month from the third year onwards. There was also a stipulation in the Government order with regard to regularization, providing that on satisfactory completion of five years as ReT on honorarium basis, the candidate would be eligible for appointment as General Line Teacher in the School Education Department.
Read Also
HC Bars Encroachments On 'Nambal Narkara'
Defer Or Direct Civil Suit Within 3 Months: J&K HC
On 19 June 2014, a policy decision was taken by the Government and decided to add a proviso to the last para captioned“regularization” of the ReT Scheme to provide that five years service rendered by the ReT before his/her regularization shall count for the purposes of fixing seniority and pensionary benefits. It was further provided that the services of the ReTs shall be transferable after regularization within the District to which they belong. This proviso was added to the Scheme vide Government Order on 25 June 2014. It was this proviso that was challenged by the appellants with the contention that the same impacted the seniority of the General Line Teachers appointed in the School Education Department on the recommendations of the Jammu & Kashmir Service Selection Board (JKSSB) on different dates.
“There is ample authority on the proposition that no employee can be given seniority from the date he is not borne on the service, class, category, or grade as the case may be,” the Division Bench underlined. ReT becomes a member of service only when there is formal order of appointment issued after evaluation and assessment of his or her performance on completion of five years as ReT, the Division Bench said.
“The government, acting in ignorance of the settled legal position, took the policy decision to confer the benefit of seniority on ReT with effect from the date they were initially engaged, notwithstanding the fact that on said date they were not borne on the cadre of service constituted by the Rule of 1979,” the Division bench said.
The Government also did not take into consideration the fact that by adding the proviso in the ReT, they had acted to the serious prejudice of the General Line Teachers who were appointed prior to the regularization of various ReTs, the Division Bench said.
“The Writ Court (single bench) appears to have been greatly swayed by extension of certain welfare provisions to the ReTs from time to time and has erroneously concluded that the Government itself had been treating the ReTs on a par with the General Line Teachers,” the Division bench said, adding,” As a consequence, the writ petition is allowed and the impugned provision, to the extent it provides that“the five years service rendered by Rehbar-e-Taleem teachers before regularization shall count for the purpose of fixing their seniority” is set aside.”
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group : Join Now
Comments
No comment