Page No.# 1/7 GAHC010273342024 undefined THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/7017/2024 SULTAN AHMED MAJUMDER S/O LATE MAJID ALI MAJUMDER, VILL AND P.O.- DEBOSTHAN, DIST- HOJAI, ASSAM, PIN-782481 VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 4 ORS. REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF ASSAM, SCHOOL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI-6 2:THE DIRECTOR OF SECONDARY EDUCATION ASSAM KAHILIPARA GUWAHATI-19 3:THE INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS NAGAON DISTRICT CIRCLE NAGAON AND HOJAI P.O. AND DIST- NAGAON ASSAM PIN-782001 4:THE MOUDANGA HIGH SCHOOL HOJAI REPRESENTED BY ITS IN-CHARGE HEAD MASTER P.O.-MOUDNAGA PATHAR DIST- HOJAI ASSAM PIN-782439 5:NAZRUL HOQUE CHOUDHURY Page No.# 2/7 IN-CHARGE HEAD MASTER OF MOUDANGA HIGH SCHOOL S/O MOTOHAR ALI VILL- SAMARALI BAZAR P.S.-MURAJHAR DIST- HOJAI ASSAM PIN-78243 Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. M A SHEIKH, MR M H CHOUDHURY,MS. A BEGUM Advocate for the Respondent : SC, SEC. EDU., BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N. UNNI KRISHNAN NAIR ORDER Date : 09.03.2026 Heard Ms. A. Begum, learned counsel, appearing for the petitioner. Also heard Ms. D. Muchahary, learned Standing Counsel, Secondary Education Department. 2. The petitioner in the present writ petition has raised a grievance with regard to the non-consideration of his case, for holding the charge of post of Headmaster of Maudanga High School, and issuance of an order dated 14.11.2024 by the Director of Secondary Education, Assam, allowing the respondent no.5, Nazrul Hoque Choudhury, to act as the In-charge Headmaster of the school, although he is junior to the petitioner, herein. 3. The petitioner was initially engaged against the post of Science Graduate Teacher in Maudanga High School on the incumbent, therein, proceeding on leave. Thereafter, the incumbent in the post against which the petitioner was engaged on leave vacancy having resigned from her services, the petitioner was adjusted against the said post. It is contended by the petitioner that he is receiving his Graduate scale of pay from the date of his such adjustment. Page No.# 3/7 The petitioner projects that he had approached the jurisdictional Inspector of Schools seeking permission to pursue B.Ed. Degree Course under the Directorate of Distance Education (ODL), Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, Haryana. The permission being granted, the petitioner got himself admitted for the said course and pursued the same. On successful completion of the said course, the petitioner was awarded the B.Ed. Degree in the year 2021. The petitioner projects that with a view to upgrade the Teachers working in various provincialized High Schools with the requisite minimum qualification, the Government in the Education Department vide a communication dated 21.02.2022 directed the jurisdictional Inspector of Schools to motivate untrained in service teachers to pursue B.Ed. courses through ODL mode from Universities listed in Appendix A(1) A(2) A(3) A(4) to the said communication. The Kurukshetra University finds mention in the Appendix A(1) annexed to the said communication dated 21.02.2022. It is projected that the petitioner having pursued his course after due permission from the respondent authorities and the institution from which the petitioner has so pursued his course in Distance Education mode being recognized by the Government of Assam, in the Education Department, the petitioner ought not to have been overlooked while considering as to who would be allowed to hold the charge of the post of Headmaster of the Schools, on retirement of the incumbent, therein. The respondent authorities having not considered the case of the petitioner, the present writ petition came to be instituted. 4. Ms. A. Begum, learned counsel for the petitioner has reiterated the facts noticed, hereinabove, and has submitted that the petitioner having proceeded to undergo her B.Ed. Degree from Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, in Distance Education Mode, after due permission was granted for the purpose by the jurisdictional Inspector of Schools and the said University being also approved by the Government of Assam, in the Education Department, he is to be held to have possessed all the requisite eligibility Page No.# 4/7 criteria for being promoted to the post of Headmaster in school, in question, and accordingly he could not have been deprived of an opportunity to hold the charge of the post of Headmaster on a vacancy arising, therein. She submits that in view of the above position, the impugned order dated 14.11.2024 allowing the respondent no.5 who admittedly is junior to the petitioner in service, would mandate an interference from this Court. 5. Per contra Ms. D. Muchahary, submits that the petitioner has pursued his B.Ed. Degree from Kurukshetra University from Open Distance Mode. She submits that Kurukshetra University is not empowered to conduct such B.Ed. Degree beyond its territorial jurisdiction. She submits that the jurisdiction of the Kurukshetra University to conduct courses does not extend to the State of Assam even by the Distance Education mode. Accordingly, she submits that the petitioner’s B.Ed. Degree would not be considered to be a valid one and therefore the petitioner was not allowed to hold the charge of the post of Headmaster. 6. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and also perused the materials available on record. 7. It is a settled position of law that a University is permitted to conduct courses in the Distance Education Mode only to the extend to which the territorial jurisdiction of such University extends. Such courses is not permissible to be offered to students beyond the territorial jurisdiction of the University concerned. 8. Having noticed the said position, this Court finds that in the present case, the petitioner had sought for permission from the jurisdictional Inspector of Schools for pursuing his B.Ed. Degree Course from Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, Haryana, and the said permission was duly granted to him by the jurisdictional Inspector of Schools, whereafter the petitioner had proceeded to enroll himself for the said course and completed the same in the year 2001. Further vide a communication dated 21.02.2022 issued by Page No.# 5/7 the Principal Secretary to the Government of Assam, Education Department, the following stipulation came to be made ; “Sir, With reference to the subject cited above, I am directed to inform you that many teachers are working in Secondary Schools under Education Department, Govt. of Assam without pro service training and the number of in-service untrained teachers is around 22387 nos. (approx.) which constitutes 39.35% of in-service trained teachers and the number of in- service trained teacher is only 15424. The training of the in-service untrained Teachers is highly essential and in this connection NCTE, New Delhi vide letter No. NCTE-Reg.1011/447/2021-Regulations Section- HQ/107331, dated 11/1/2022 has submitted the list of recognized Universities/Institutions which are offering B.Ed. course through ODL programme. The list of recognized Universities is enclosed as Appendix A(1), A(2), A(3) and A(4). The B.Ed. Course is highly essential and is a requirement as per existing Service Rules of Govt. of Assam and NCTE Regulation inforce and the in-service untrained teachers has to be trained to deal with the teaching curriculum and also to improve the teaching learning process through providing quality education and accordingly, DSE, Assam and all Inspector of Schools of the Districts are requested to take immediate steps and motivate the untrained in-service teachers to pursue the B.Ed. course through ODI mode from the Universities as listed in Appendix 'A(1), A(2), A(3) and A(4). Immediate steps should to be taken on the matter with due compliance report to the Govt.” Page No.# 6/7 9. The Kurukshetra University finds mentioned in Appendix A(1) at serial no.4 to the communication dated 21.02.2022. A perusal of the said communication dated 21.02.2022 would reveal that the Government had found that many Teachers working in Secondary Schools under the Education Department were so rendering service without having the requisite training. Thereafter by referring to communication issued by the NCTE dated 11.01.2022, wherein list of recognized Universities offering B.Ed. courses through ODL programme was brought on record, the Government in the Education Department required the Inspector of Schools, to take immediate steps to motivate the untrained in-service Teachers to pursue B.Ed. Course through ODL mode from Universities as listed in the Appendixes enclosed to the said communication. 10. The Kurukshetra University being also recognized by the Government of Assam, in the Education Department, to be one of the recognized institutions for offering B.Ed. Course in the ODL mode, the B.Ed. Course of study undergone by the petitioner from the said University cannot be held to be one so undergone from an institution not recognized by the Government of Assam. Accordingly, the course of study and the B.Ed. Degree as obtained by the petitioner cannot be held to be invalid. Accordingly, the said B.Ed. Degree of the petitioner mandatorily must be given due recognition. 11. In view of the above conclusion reached by this Court, the Director of Secondary Education, Assam, is directed to re-consider the order dated 14.11.2024 after affording a due opportunity of hearing to the petitioner as well the respondent no.5, herein. Thereafter by reckoning the B.Ed. Degree pursued by the petitioner to be valid, proceed to pass fresh orders allowing the senior most incumbent in the School to hold the charge of the post of Headmaster till the said post is filled up on regular basis. Page No.# 7/7 The said exercise shall be initiated and completed within a period of 1 (one) month from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. 12. This order is being passed in the peculiar facts arising in the present proceedings and the same shall not be treated as a precedent. 13. With the above observations and directions, the present writ petition stands disposed of. JUDGE Comparing Assistant