IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE C.T.RAVIKUMAR WEDNESDAY, THE 11TH AUGUST 2010 / 20TH SRAVANA 1932 WP(C).No. 24245 of 2010(E) -------------------------- PETITIONER(S): --------------- 1. THE PRESIDENT,PARENT TEACHER'S ASSOCIATION,GOVERNMENT HIGH SCHOOL,CHULLIKODE. 2. THE TEACHER IN CHARGE, -DO- BY ADV. SRI.V.A.MUHAMMED RESPONDENT(S): --------------- 1. THE STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT,GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT,SECRETARIAT,THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695 001. 2. THE DIRECTOR OF HIGHER SECONDARY EDUCATION,HOUSING BOARD BUILDING,SANTHI NAGAR, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-1. 3. THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, POST MALAPPURAM-676 519. 4. THE DISTRICT EDUCATIONAL OFFICER, POST MALAPPURAM-676 519. 5. THE HEADMASTER,GOVERNMENT HIGH SCHOOL, MUTHUVALLOOR,MALAPPURAM DISTRICT-673 638. SENIOR GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI.T.B.HOOD-R1 TO R4 THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 11/08/2010, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: C.T. RAVIKUMAR, J. -------------------------------------------- W.P.(C). NO. 24245 OF 2010 -------------------------------------------- Dated this the 11th day of August, 2010 JUDGMENT The first petitioner is the President of the Parent Teachers' Association of Government High School, Chullikkode in Malappuram District and the second petitioner is the Teacher-in-charge of the said school. This Writ Petition has been filed mainly with the following prayers:- i) call for the records relating to Exhibits P-8 and quash the original of the same to the extent it grant Higher secondary courses in High School, Muthuvallur in preference to Government High School, Chullikode. ii) issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writ order or direction commanding the 1st and 2nd respondents to grant Higher Secondary Courses to Government High School, Chullikode. 2. A scanning of the contentions in the Writ Petition would reveal that the grievance of the petitioners is against the granting of Higher Secondary Course in Government High School, Muthuvallur. 3. At the very outset, it is to be noted that both the schools are W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 2 Government schools situated in the very same panchayath viz., Muthuvallur Grama Panchayath. The learned Government pleader submitted that petitioners' school cannot claim the status of a Government High School since the high school section of the said school is being run only on the basis of Exts.P4 and P5 interim orders of this Court. In that context, it is relevant to refer to certain aspects discernible from the Writ Petition itself. Earlier, as per Ext.P1 G.O dated 27.11.2007, Government have sanctioned one high school in Muthuvallur and decided to upgrade G.M.U.P School Chullikkode as high school. As per Ext.P2 G.O dated 21.1.2008, Ext.P1 order was revoked by the Government. Thereupon, the first petitioner herein preferred an appeal against Ext.P2 G.O before the Government. Aggrieved by the delay in the matter of disposal of the said appeal, the first petitioner moved W.P.(C).No.13707/2008 before this Court. The said Writ Petition was disposed of with a direction to consider the appeal preferred by the petitioner therein. After such consideration, the Government have issued Ext.P3 order. Ext.P3 in so far as it is relevant reads thus: a) Government order G.O(MS) 2002/07/G.EDn. Dated 27.11.2007 to the effect that GMUP School Chullikodu is upgraded as a High School is cancelled. W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 3 b) Students admitted to class 8 in GMUP school, Chullikkodu during 2007-2008 shall be issued TC and directed to be admitted in the schools of their choice to the standards to which they are entitled to be admitted. 4. The said order was challenged by the first petitioner herein as W.P.(C).No.16660/2008. It is still pending before this Court. Ext.P4 is the interim order passed by this Court in the said Writ Petition. Later, the matter was referred to a Division Bench of this Court and Ext.P5 is the order passed by the Division Bench in the said Writ petition. Ext.P5 order reads as follows: “We make it clear that the interim order dated 4.6.2008 passed by this Court will confine only to the Government High School, Chullikode. Therefore, it will be open to the Government to take appropriate action in respect of other schools. There will be a direction to the third respondent Deputy Director of Education, Malappuram to see that the required teaching staff are deputed in the Government High School, Chullikode, within ten days from today.” The above mentioned undisputed facts would reveal that G.M.U.P School Chullikode is presently working as a Government High School, W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 4 Chullikode based only on Exts.P4 and P5 interim orders passed by this Court in W.P.(C).No.16660/2008. In other words, the very status of the petitioners' school depends upon the outcome of W.P.(C).No.16660/2008. Therefore, it is based on the aforesaid factual situation that the learned Government Pleader submitted that the petitioners' school could not strictly be regarded as a High School. It is the further submission of the learned Government Pleader that no posts have been sanctioned in the said school and it is honouring the interim orders passed by this Court that the teachers are being sent to the said school by way of working arrangement. In the case of Government High School, Muthuvallur, as the very caption denotes, it is a High Schoool. The avowed policy of the Government, as is obvious from Ext.P6 G.O dated 3.6.2010 is to start Higher Secondary Course only in high schools that too, only in those Grama Panchayaths wherein there is no Higher Secondary Schools. G.M.U.P School, Chullikode, which is presently running the high school section on the strength of Exts.P4 and P5 interim orders of this Court and Government High School, Muthuvallur are situated in the very same panchayat ie., Muthuvallur Panchayat. That apart, the learned Government Pleader pointed out that there is no specific averment in the Writ Petition that pursuant to Ext.P7 notification, the second petitioner had submitted an W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 5 application and based on that application no comparative assessment was made and then the fifth respondent school was preferred in the matter of sanctioning of Higher Secondary course. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the fact that the second petitioner has submitted an application for sanction of the Higher Secondary Course can be inferred from the averments in the Writ Petition. It is also submitted that it is a fact that in response to Ext.P7 application, the second petitioner has submitted an application for sanctioning of a Higher Secondary Course in the said school. That apart, it is submitted that the comparative facilities and features of both the schools have been specifically explained in the Writ Petition. Be that as it may, the question is whether the action on the part of the first respondent in including Government High School, Muthuvallur in Ext.P8 select list can be said to be arbitrary and illegal warranting interference by this Court. The facts expatiated earlier would reveal that the status of the school represented by the petitioners as High School is, in troth, depends upon the verdict in W.P.(C).NO.16660/2008 which now pending before this Court. In other words, whether the said school can retain the status of a High School depends upon the outcome of W.P.(C). NO.16660/2008. As noticed hereinbefore, the said school as also Government High School, Muthuvallur are situated in the very same W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 6 Panchayat and the avowed policy of the Government is to start higher secondary school in a panchayat where there is no higher secondary school at all. The learned Government Pleader submitted that there is no Higher Secondary School in the Muthuvallur Panchayat. In view of the facts thus obtained in this case, the mere assertion that High School, Chullikkode viz., G.M.U.P.School, Chullikkode whose upgradation as High School was cancelled by the Government, but functioning as High School based on Exts.P4 and P5, is having more features and facilities than Government High School, Muthuvallur, even if taken as correct, cannot be a reason to interfere with the action on the part of the Government in choosing in between the said two Government Schools and granting higher secondary course to Government High School, Muthuvallur. When the choice was between two Government schools and Government have chosen one of them for granting higher secondary course, I am of the view that there is no scope for attributing arbitrariness, malafides or favouritism. In fact, a scanning of grounds 1 to 3 raised in this Writ Petition would reveal that the petitioners did not have any such contention as well. In the light of the aforementioned admitted facts, the action on the part of the Government in choosing Government High School, Muthuvallur does not call for any judicial review. In short, as on today, the G.M.U.P School, Chullikode W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 7 cannot claim the status of a Government High School. It can only continue to run the high school section in the light of Exts.P4 and P5 interim orders. When Government took such a decision in respect of two Government Schools and decided to start Higher secondary course in Government High School, Muthuvallur the Parent Teacher's Association of the other School and the teacher-in-charge of that school cannot legally sustain their challenge based on grounds 1 to 3 in view of the peculiar circumstances as explained above. That apart, the learned Government Pleader submitted that admissions to Higher Secondary Course have already started in Government High School, Muthuvallur. For all these reasons, I am not inclined to accept the contentions of the petitioners that Government High School Muthuvallur was given undue preference and that its inclusion in Ext.P8 is illegal warranting interference by this Court. There is no merit in the Writ Petition and accordingly, it is dismissed. (C.T. RAVIKUMAR, JUDGE) spc W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 8 C.T. RAVIKUMAR, J. W.P.(C). NO. /2010 JUDGMENT June, 2010 W.P.(C) NO.24245/2010 9