AI Structured Summary
Not yet generated for this judgment
Judgment
Heard Dr. B. Ahmed, learned counsel for the appellants as well as Mr. D. Saikia, learned Senior Additional Advocate General, Assam assisted by Mr. S.P. Bhattacharjee, learned counsel for the State Respondents. Mr. Sanjib Kumar Bhuyan, Director of Elementary Education, Assam is also present in person. The related writ petition i.e. WP(C) 7335/2005 was instituted by sixteen persons, out of which fourteen of them are before this Court in the present writ appeal ? the writ petitioner no. 1 Sudhangshu Das and writ petitioner no. 2 i.e. Samsul Hoque Barbhuiya having suffered demise in the meantime.
Seeking appointment as Assistant Teachers in L.P. Schools under the Office of the Deputy Inspector of Schools, Hailakandi, the writ petitioners had instituted two civil suits i.e. Title Suit No. 61 of 1990 and Title Suit No. 62 of 1990 in the Court of the Assistant District Judge, Hailakandi. Both the suits were decreed by separate but identical Orders dated 25.07.1995. The said judgment and decrees attained finality.
Despite the above position, steps towards compliance of the order of the Civil Court underwent a process of unnecessary delay until 21.03.2001 when the Deputy Inspectors of Schools, Hailakandi informed the Commissioner & Secretary, Education Department that the writ petitioners have been appointed by passing speaking orders against existing vacant posts.
Contrary to the above, as no formal appointment orders were issued, the writ petitioners were constrained to institute the related writ petition i.e. WP(C) 7335/2005 seeking necessary directions to the State Respondents to issue formal appointment orders and to pay their salary and allowances with effect from 21.03.2001. The said writ petition was disposed of by Judgment & Order dated 23.05.2012 with the following directions: "1. the respondent no. 1 shall verify as to whether the petitioners are working in their respective schools as per the statement furnished by the respondent no. 3 on 21.03.2001;
depending upon such verification, the petitioners shall be paid their current salary w.e.f. the date they started working against the appointed posts;
if the petitioners are found working as on date, they shall be paid their current salary in addition to their arrear pay.
the above exercise shall be completed within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order."
The cause of action for preferring this appeal by the writ petitioners is that the main relief sought for in the writ petition for a direction to the respondents to issue formal appointment orders did not fall for consideration and/or granted by the learned Single Judge. It is pleaded that without appointment orders it would be virtually impossible for the appellants/writ petitioners to discharge duties as Assistant Teachers and for this reason alone no salary has been paid to them despite directions of the Court.
On 26.10.2017 this Court had recorded the basic facts and the directions of the learned Single Judge and had also observed that in the absence of any appointment orders the directions of the learned Single Judge has been rendered ineffective. In such a situation, order was passed for the personal appearance of the Director of Elementary Education on the next date of hearing. On 02.11.2017 the Director of Elementary Education was present in person and, on his prayer, three weeks time was granted for compliance of the judgment and decree passed by the Civil Court. On 27.11.2017 the respondent authorities also assured that the order of the Court will be complied with, in letter and spirit, within ten days time.
In compliance of the directions of this Court, the Director of Elementary Education, Assam has produced before this Court the Order dated 05.12.2017 issued under his hand, appointing 11 of the appellants herein as Assistant Teachers, effective from their respective dates of joining. Along with the said Order dated 05.12.2017, a Statement is also enclosed to indicate that out of the original sixteen writ petitioners, two of them i.e. writ petitioner no. 1 and 2 had expired, whereas the present appellant no. 1 (Niranjan Chandra Das); appellant no. 7 (Abdul Kadir Barbhuiya) and appellant no. 12 (Mohibur Rahman Laskar) have since completed 60 years of age.
From the above, it now transpires that the primary relief sought for in the present appeal has been granted by the respondents by way of issuing formal Appointment Order dated 05.12.2017 to those appellants who are yet to attain the age of superannuation. As no further issue remains to be considered, this appeal stands accordingly disposed of in terms of the observations above. Needless to say, steps for making payment of salary to the appellants concerned shall now be taken up in right earnest in terms of the directions of the learned Single Judge contained in Judgment & Order dated 23.05.2012.