Upendra Sati v. Uttarakand Government Junior High School
2017-02-23
V.K.BIST
body2017
DigiLaw.ai
JUDGMENT : V.K. Bist, J. Present petition has been filed by the petitioner seeking the following reliefs: “(a) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of Certiorari to call for the record and to quash the order contained in letter no. memo/association/2016-17 dated 24.07.2016 (Annexure No.-4) issued under the hands of President and Secretary, Uttarakhand Government Junior High School (Higher Secondary) Teachers Association, Branch District Chamoli. (b) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Certiorari to call for the record and to quash the order contained in letter no./64/2016-17 dated 25.7.2016 issued under hands of the President and General Secretary of the respondent no.-1 (which is not available with the petitioner after calling it on record from the respondent nos. 1, 2 & 3). (c) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Certiorari to call for the record and to quash the order contained in letter no. memo/association/2016-17 dated 31.7.2016 (Annexure No.-5) issued under the hands of President and Secretary of the Uttarakhand Government Junior High School (Higher Secondary) Teachers Association, Branch District Chamoli. (d) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondents to restore/revive the working committee of the respondent associations Block Pokhari and reinstate the petitioner as President of Block Pokhari of the association after reviving his membership of the association and permit him to work as per the Constitution of the respondent association.” 2. Briefly put, the case of the petitioner is as follows: On 20.10.2001, the Uttarakhand Government Junior High School (Higher Secondary) Teachers Association was incorporated and registered under the provisions of the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (Act No. 21 of 1860) with the Registrar Societies Uttarakhand. Earlier, the name of the association was Junior High School Teachers Association, Uttaranchal, which has been subsequently changed as aforesaid. Accordingly, in District Chamoli, a Teacher Association known as Government Junior High School (High Secondary) Teachers Association, Branch District-Chamoli is constituted as per the procedure prescribed in Chapter -V of the Constitution of the Association and, accordingly, the working committee of the district is constituted by election. At present, the respondent no.4 and 5 are the President and Secretary of the District Association of the respondent no.-1. Similarly, as prescribed in Chapter VI of the Constitution of the Association, a block level association is constituted.
At present, the respondent no.4 and 5 are the President and Secretary of the District Association of the respondent no.-1. Similarly, as prescribed in Chapter VI of the Constitution of the Association, a block level association is constituted. The block level association consists of general house and working committee. The general house elects the President and Secretary of the block level association by election under Article 67 of the Constitution and rest of the office bearers are nominated by the President and Secretary. The Headmaster of each Government Higher Secondary School or a member nominated by him shall the ex-officio members of the working committee of the block level association. 3. It is the case of the petitioner that he is an Assistant Teacher in Government Junior High School Pokhari, Block-Pokhari, District-Chamoli and, by virtue of being the Assistant Teacher in the Government Junior High School, he is the member of the respondent association. In the month of December, 2014, an election was held for the block association of the respondent no.-1 and, for constitution of the working committee of the block level association, the petitioner submitted his candidature. According to the petitioner, he was elected unopposed as President of the block level association and, subsequently, the entire working committee has been constituted by him and the Secretary. The petitioner has been discharging the duties as President of the block level association of the respondent no.-1 in accordance with the Constitution of the Association for the benefit of its members and there was no complaint against his conduct and working as President of the block level association. It is alleged that the respondents, feeling envious about the popularity of the petitioner, hatched a conspiracy to throw him out of the association in a preplanned and illegal exercise of their power, which is absolutely contrary to the provisions of the Constitution of the Association. According to the petitioner, the main purpose of the respondents is to throw the petitioner out of the association so that he can not contest the election either in the district level or in the State level association. 4.
According to the petitioner, the main purpose of the respondents is to throw the petitioner out of the association so that he can not contest the election either in the district level or in the State level association. 4. It is further case of the petitioner that the respondent no.-1, under the hands of its State General Secretary, leveled charges of indiscipline upon the petitioner in its letter dated 21.7.2016, specifying in the letter that the petitioner made some serious comments and accusation upon the State President of the association and has shown disobedience to the orders and directions issued by the office bearers of the association. The respondent no.-2 and 3 further directed the district level association to ensure the removal of the petitioner from the post of President of block level allocation of Block-Pokhari and to ensure the proceedings for expulsion of the petitioner from the membership of the respondent no-l for life. In the said letter dated 21.7.2016, the President of district level association was directed to inform him about the action taken against the petitioner. The district level association, under the hands of its President and Secretary, acting upon the letter dated 21.7.2016 issued by the respondent no.-2 & 3, found the petitioner guilty of violation of the Article-6C and 21A of the Constitution of the Association and, without application of mind, the district level association removed the petitioner from the elected post of Block President of Block-Pokhari, District-Chamoli and, at the same time, he was expelled from the primary membership of the respondent no.-1 association for life w.e.f. date of the issuance of the aforesaid letter dated 24.7.2016, copy of which was also forwarded to the respondent nos. 2 & 3. The district level association, vide its letter no. memo/association/2016-17 dated 31.7.2016, dismissed the working committee of the association of Block Pokhari and constituted a Sanyojak Mandal (Board of Coordinators) as per the directions given to the respondent nos. 2 & 3 in its letter no. 64/2016-17 dated 25.7.2016 and appointed the respondent nos. 6 & 7 as Coordinators and Assistant Coordinator of the Block Association Pokhari. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioner preferred an appeal to next higher unit i.e. State Level Association, respondent nos.
2 & 3 in its letter no. 64/2016-17 dated 25.7.2016 and appointed the respondent nos. 6 & 7 as Coordinators and Assistant Coordinator of the Block Association Pokhari. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioner preferred an appeal to next higher unit i.e. State Level Association, respondent nos. 1, 2 & 3 on 24.8.2016 with a prayer to quash the orders of the President/Secretary, the District Level Association and further requested to stay the effect and operation of the orders dated 24.7.2016 & 31.7.2016 during the pendency of appeal before the respondent nos. 2 & 3. According to the petitioner, the appeal preferred by him has not been decided so far by the respondent nos. 2 & 3. Hence, this writ petition. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the orders impugned are bad in law, inasmuch as, the same have been passed under the dictates of the State Level Authority of the Association. He contended that the orders impugned have not been passed independently and are not in accordance with the provisions contained in the constitution of the respondent association. 6. Mr. M.S. Chauhan, learned counsel appearing for the respondents would submit that, in fact, the action has been taken against the petitioner due to his indiscipline. He sat on strike for three days. Though, the higher authority asked the petitioner not to sat on Dharna, he sat on Dharna and, therefore, the studies of the students suffered. He fairly conceded that the orders impugned refer to the direction issued by the State Level Authority of the Association. 7. I have perused the orders impugned. In these orders, the President of the District Level Committee has clearly mentioned that the same are being passed under the direction issued by the State Level Authority of the Association. In my considered view, the District Level Authority should have passed the order independently, untrammeled by the observation made by the higher authorities. In view of this fact, the orders impugned deserve to be quashed. At this stage, learned counsel for the respondents submitted that in the event of quashing of orders impugned, liberty may be given to the District Level Authority to pass a fresh order in accordance with law. 8. In view of the above discussion, the writ petition is allowed and the orders impugned are quashed.
At this stage, learned counsel for the respondents submitted that in the event of quashing of orders impugned, liberty may be given to the District Level Authority to pass a fresh order in accordance with law. 8. In view of the above discussion, the writ petition is allowed and the orders impugned are quashed. However, liberty is granted to the District Level Authority to pass a fresh order, in accordance with law, expeditiously, preferably within a period of one month from the date of production of certified copy of this judgment. While passing the fresh order, it will be open for the District Level Authority to take into account the act of the petitioner. 9. There will be no order as to costs.