The Patna High Court dismissed a Petition filed by the petitioners, four teachers, challenging the very Rules under which they were appointed.
They also claim regular pay scales of basic grade and graduate teachers in the light of Article 14 of the Constitution of India; without prejudice to the creation of a regular professional and permanent cadre for the regular appointment of Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) qualified persons.
The petitioners have prayed for an order of quashing of the existing ‘Bihar Panchayat Prarambhik Sikshak (Niyojan evam Seva Shart) Niyamavali, 2012’ and to appoint TET-qualified Graduate Grade teachers in the various districts.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice K. Vinod Chandran and Justice Partha Sarthy noted that all the petitioners were appointed under the Niyamavali 2012, which is challenged by the petitioners. The petitioner’s contention is that even persons without TET qualifications have been appointed, and this creates discrimination. The petitioners, as the Bench noticed, also seek a permanent cadre in which only TET-qualified persons can be appointed.
P.K. Shahi , Advocate General for the State had first pointed out that according to the counter affidavit in a petition of 2020, which is dated 21.08.2020, the Rules of 2012 have been repealed and there is a new Rule enforced. As of now, the very continuance of the petitioners is only since every action taken under the earlier Rules are saved by the new Rule.
It is also pointed out that the prayer for equal pay for equal work was rejected by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in State of Bihar v. Bihar Secondary Teachers Struggle Committee, (2019) 18 SCC 301.
The petition itself is misplaced according to the Bench since the petitioners are not sure as to whether they are challenging the Rules or seeking regularization in sanctioned posts. If the challenge to the Rules are upheld, necessarily their appointments would also fall to the ground , held by the High Court.
“Regularization and equal pay for equal work have been elaborately considered by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the cited decision. It was held that any direction to disburse same salary and emoluments to the Niyojit teachers would create great imbalance and cause undue strain on budgetary resources. Finding that the State action was not unfair or discriminatory, the measure of creation of a separate cadre was held to be in judicious and optimum utilization of available resources. The Rules, as pointed out by the Advocate General, has been repealed in August 2022, and the present writ petition was filed on 28.12.2020”, the order reads.