Page No.# 1/12 GAHC010149752017 undefined THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/7252/2017 GUNIN BORAH and 2 ORS S/O LT. BHUBAN BORAH R/O VILL- KHATOWAL, P.O. CHAULKORA ASSISTANT TEACHER 42 NO. CHAULKORA KHATOWAL L.P. SCHOOL, SIVASAGAR. 2: SMT. KABITA GOGOI D/O LT. SINGHESWAR GOGOI R/O CHAULKORA NO. 1 P.O. CHAULKORA P.S. SIVASAGAR ASSISTANT TEACHER 15 NO. CHAULKORA L.P. SCHOOL. 3: MRS. SWARNA BURAGOHAIN CHANGMAI ASSISTANT TEACHER 346 KONWERPUR MUKTAB L.P. SCHOOL R/O VILL- KONWERPUR TEPORTAL GOHAINGAON P.O. KONEARPUR SIVASAGAR ASSA VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REP. BY THE COMMISSIONER and SECETARY TO THE GOV.T OF ASSAM, EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI -6, ASSAM 2:THE SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM FINANCE DEPARTMENT DISPUR GUWAHATI -6. 3:THE DIRECTOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT ASSAM Page No.# 2/12 KAHILIPARA GUWAHATI -19. 4:THE DISTRICT ELEMENTARY EDUCATION OFFICER SIVASAGAR ASSAM PIN - 785640 5:THE DEPUTY INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS SIVASAGAR ASSAM PIN - 785640 6:THE BLOCK ELEMENTARY EDUCATION OFFICER DEMOW BLOCK SIVASAGAR ASSAM 7:THE TREASURY OFFICER SIVASAGAR DIST. SIVASAGAR ASSA Advocate for the Petitioner : MR.S SAIKIA, MR.N J GOGOI,MR.P SAIKIA Advocate for the Respondent : SC, FINANCE, MR. S M T CHISTIE (SC, ELEMENTARY EDUCATION) BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N. UNNI KRISHNAN NAIR ORDER Date : 30.04.2026 Heard Mr. N J Gogoi, Learned Counsel for the Petitioners. Also heard Mr. B Kaushik, Learned Standing Counsel, Department of Education, Assam. 2. The petitioners, by way of instituting the present writ petition, have prayed for a direction upon the respondent authorities for Page No.# 3/12 authorizing to the petitioners, their salaries, in arrears, w.e.f March 2012, along with their current salaries. 3. At the outset, Mr. N J Gogoi, Learned Counsel for the Petitioner, has submitted that the petitioner No. 3, Mrs. Swarna Buragohain Changmai, during the pendency of the present proceedings, had passed on and accordingly, the present writ petition is not being pressed on her behalf and the same is only pressed, on behalf of the petitioner Nos. 1 & 2. Accordingly, the consideration in the present order is limited to the claims made by the petitioner Nos. 1 & 2. 4. The petitioners, in the present writ petition, project that they were appointed, in pursuance to a selection process, initiated in the year 1996. The petitioners were initially appointed as stipendiary teachers, vide appointment orders, issued by the Deputy Inspector of Schools, Sivasagar. It is further projected that the petitioners, herein, were also deputed to undergo the Basic Training Course, in the year 2002 and 2003, respectively. On conclusion of the said Basic Training Course, it is projected that the petitioners were authorized a scale of pay and they were so drawing their pay and allowances in the scale of pay, as authorized to an Assistant Teacher in a Lower Primary School. The petitioners also contend that GPF accounts were also opened, in their respective cases. As there was an irregularity, in releasing to the petitioners, their current salaries, on account of the inaction on the part Page No.# 4/12 of the respondent authorities, their salaries had become in arrears. However, such arrears of pay were being released to the petitioners from time to time. Thereafter, it is contended that with effect from March 2012, the respondents, without assigning any reason, whatsoever, proceeded to stop the payment of salaries to the petitioners. 5. Being aggrieved, the petitioners approached this Court, by way of instituting a Writ Petition being WP(C) No. 1114/2007. The said Writ Petition was disposed of by a Coordinate Bench of this Court, vide order dated 12.04.2007, requiring the respondent authorities to place the case of the petitioners before the constituted Committee and the Committee was directed to examine and consider the cases of the petitioners, within the time frame, so prescribed, therein. The State, by way of instituting an appeal in the matter, had assailed the order dated 12.04.2007 passed in WP(C) No. 1114/2007, before a Division Bench of this Court. The said appeal was considered and vide order dated 18.02.2013, the same was disposed of noticing that the Committee, as constituted in the matter, had already submitted its report, with regard to the services of the petitioners, herein, and a final decision, thereof, was yet to be taken. Accordingly, the Division Bench of this Court directed the Commissioner & Secretary to the Government of Assam, Department of Elementary Education, Assam, to take a decision in the matter, after an opportunity of hearing to the petitioners, herein. As the matter was not taken to its Page No.# 5/12 logical conclusion and the petitioners were continued to be denied their due salaries, the petitioners have instituted the present writ petition, praying for the reliefs, as noticed, hereinabove. 6. Mr. N J Gogoi, Learned Counsel for the Petitioners, at the outset, has submitted that during the pendency of the present proceedings, the respondent authorities, on considering the recommendations made by the constituted Committee, in favor of the petitioners, had proceeded to issue orders, all dated 30.01.2021, towards accommodating the services of the petitioners against a post of Assistant Teacher in a Lower Primary School, on purely temporary basis and authorizing to them, a scale of pay. Such accommodation is projected to have been so effected, with prospective effect, w.e.f 01.11.2020. Mr. N J Gogoi, submits that the petitioners, now having been accommodated against posts, identified for the purpose, it is to be held that the petitioners were initially recruited to their respective services by following the due procedure mandated. It is submitted by Mr. N J Gogoi, that the petitioners, herein, were recruited in pursuance to a process of selection and accordingly, any irregularity, which may have existed in the selection process is always permissible to be regularized by the respondent authorities. He submits that the petitioners are not illegal appointees. Accordingly, Mr. N J Gogoi submits that in view of the fact that the petitioners have now been authorized their respective pay and allowances, w.e.f 01.11.2020, this Court would Page No.# 6/12 be pleased, in the attending the facts and circumstances of the present case, to direct the respondent authorities to release to the petitioners their arrears of salaries, w.e.f March, 2012 till 31.10.2020. He further submits that the period, with effect from the date of initial engagement of the petitioners, is to be reckoned and by reckoning the same, the petitioners are to be directed to be provided pension and pensionary benefits, in terms of the provisions of Assam Services (Pension) Rules, 1969. 7. On a query made by this Court, Mr. N J Gogoi has fairly submitted that the order dated 30.01.2021, accommodating the petitioners against various posts in Lower Primary Schools, as well as the stipulations made, therein, have not been put to challenge by the petitioners. 8. Per contra, Mr. B Kaushik, Learned Standing Counsel, Department of Elementary Education, Assam, submits that although it is projected that the petitioners were initially recruited, in pursuance to a selection process, the materials, coming on record, goes to reveal that the petitioners were so appointed, in excess of the posts, so advertised and against non-existent posts. It is submitted that as there were no vacant post available in the Sivasagar District in Primary Schools, the pay and allowances of the petitioners were not permissible to be so authorized after March 2012. He submits that in pursuance to the directions passed by this Court, in various proceedings, including the proceedings of WP(C) Page No.# 7/12 No. 1048/2004, the order dated 30.01.2021 is found to have been issued during the pendency of the present writ petition. 9. Mr. B Kaushik further submits that the said order dated 30.01.2021 was so issued on conclusion of the process of consideration of the claims of the petitioners, for which, also there were directions passed by this Court. The petitioners are also found to have accepted the stipulations made in the order dated 30.01.2021 and joined respective services, in pursuance, thereon, without, however, raising any objection with regard to the same. 10. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the materials available on record. 11. The facts noticed, hereinabove, are not in dispute. The petitioners, in the present writ petition, have not brought on record any materials to demonstrate that their initial appointment as Stipendiary Teacher, effected vide order dated 30.01.1996, were so effected, in pursuance of a due process of selection undergone by them, in the matter, in accordance with the provisions of the Assam Elementary Education (Provincialisation) Rules, 1977. It is seen that the petitioners, after their such engagement as Stipendiary Teacher were deputed to undergo Junior Basic Training and in the meanwhile, also authorized a scale of pay by the jurisdictional Deputy Inspector of Schools. It is also found that the petitioners were authorized their Page No.# 8/12 scale of pay from a date prior to completion of their Junior Basic Training course. It is a settled position that a Stipendiary Teacher is entitled to draw his/her pay in the scale of pay, authorized to the post of Assistant Teacher of an L.P. School, only after completion by them of their Junior Basic Training course. The petitioners had completed their Junior Basic Training course only on 12.03.2003. 12. It is seen that the Government of Assam in Education Department had approached the Cabinet, with regard to the regularization of irregularly/illegally appointed teachers, in various Elementary Schools of the state. 13. The Education Department, thereafter, proposed to constitute a Screening Committee to examine the validity of the appointment of the teachers, who were identified to have irregularly/illegally appointed. Accordingly, an Office Memorandum dated 15.11.2011, was issued constituting a Screening Committee to examine the cases of such irregularly/illegally appointed Teachers. In terms of the said Office Memorandum, advertisements came to be issued by the Director of Elementary Education, Assam, inviting applications from such irregularly/illegally appointed Teachers, appointed during the period of 1991-2001. The petitioners were some of the candidates who had appeared before the Screening Committee. On conclusion of the proceedings before the Screening Committee and also after the Page No.# 9/12 verification of such recommendations made, in pursuance to further decisions taken in the matter, the recommendations, as made by the Screening Committees, the teachers, so screened, were segregated into 3 (three) different lists. List No.1, incorporated teachers, who had received salaries up to 2007 and onwards and who also had completed their Junior Basic Training course (JBT)/D.El.Ed. List No.2 incorporated teachers who had received salaries up to 2007, but had not completed the Junior Basic Training course (JBT)/D.El.Ed. List-3 incorporated candidates who had neither received salaries nor had completed the prescribed training courses i.e. Junior Basic Training course (JBT)/D.El.Ed. 14. The matter was, thereafter, processed for placing before the Cabinet, seeking approval for accommodating those teachers who were placed in List No.1, as teachers, against personal/supernumerary posts, with prospective effect from the date of approval of the Cabinet. The teachers who were included in List No.2 were proposed to be accommodated as tutors, with prospective effect, from the date of approval of the Cabinet. The said proposals as placed before the Cabinet was approved by it, in its meeting held on 07.10.2020. The petitioners, being placed in List-1, they were accommodated as a Teachers, vide issuance of an order dated 30.01.2021. Page No.# 10/12 15. In the order dated 30.01.2021, it was stipulated that the accommodation of the petitioners as teachers were purely personal in nature and would cease to exist as and when the petitioners retire from their services or expire. It was further stipulated that an undertaking would be mandated to be given by the petitioners along with their Joining Report that they would be covered by the New Pension Rules. It was further stipulated in the said order dated 30.01.2021, that the accommodated teachers would get prospective effect from 01.11.2020 only and he/she cannot claim any benefit, whatsoever, in respect of the past services rendered by him/her prior to 01.11.2020. In other words, the stipulations contained in the order dated 30.01.2021, had the effect of a fresh appointment order being issued in respect of the irregularly/illegally appointed teachers, placed in List-1 as noticed, hereinabove, and such appointment was made with prospective effect i.e. w.e.f 01.11.2020. Further, such appointees were also barred from claiming their arrears of salaries prior to 01.11.2020. 16. This Court finds that the petitioners, in pursuance to the said order dated 30.01.2021, accepted the same and submitted their Joining Report, without any objection, whatsoever. The petitioners have not challenged the stipulations as contained in the order dated 30.01.2021. Page No.# 11/12 17. In view of the above position obtaining in the matter and the petitioners not having challenged the stipulations as contained in the order dated 30.01.2021 and they having accepted it by joining their services by submitting a fresh Joining Report, this Court is of the considered view that no benefit would be permissible to be extended to the petitioner, herein, contrary to what has been, stipulated in the order dated 30.01.2021. This Court further notices that after the joining of the petitioner in their services, in pursuance to the order dated 30.01.2021, the petitioners had continued in their services under the terms and conditions as set out, therein, without raising any objection. The petitioners have also not disputed the fact that the petitioners were construed to be an irregularly/illegally appointed teachers and a fresh appointment, as effected in their case, vide the order dated 30.01.2021, was so done in pursuance to the petitioners, appearing before the Screening Committee, as constituted in the matter, vide the Office Memorandum dated 15.11.2011. Accordingly, the petitioners are not found to be entitled to any further benefit, other than what came to be extended to them, vide the order dated 30.01.2021. 18. In view of the above discussions, this Court is of the considered view that the present writ petition is devoid of any merits and accordingly, the same stands dismissed. However, there would be Page No.# 12/12 no order as to costs. JUDGE Comparing Assistant