The Madras High Court today quashed two Government Orders restricting appointment to various posts of non-teaching staff in private aided schools.
Justice D.Hariparanthaman quashed the May 30, 2007 and July 23, 2010 orders of School Education department while passing orders on a batch of petitions challenging the G.Os issued under Tamil Nadu Private Schools Recognised (Regulation) Act 1973 and the Rules.
The issue related to the appointment and approval of non-teaching staff in aided schools governed by the provisions of the Act.
The 2007 GO specifically restricted the appointment to various posts in non-teaching staff categories. It stated that the posts of watchman, sweeper, scavenger etc shall be outsourced and the expenditure to meet the outsourcing method shall be met by the aided schools while saying aid would be given only to posts such as librarian and clerk.
According to the petitioners, it amounts to indirect withdrawal of the grant-in-aid for these sanctioned posts and thus the same is violative of Sections 14 and 19 of the Act read with Rule 15(1) and 11 of the Rules.
The 2010 G.O contains Annexure I and Annexure II wherein it had been stated that there were 952 non-teaching posts vacant and of these 467 posts of watchman, sweeper etc shall be filled only by way of outsourcing.
Annexure II stated that aid to the remaining 485 posts of Junior Assistant, Librarian, Laboratory Assistant, Library Assistant, Record Clerk, Office Assistant, etc. Could be sanctioned.
Rejecting the arguments of the advocate for government that it was within its powers to issue the GOs under the Act, the Judge said the GOs were without jurisdiction and violative of the very scheme of the Act.
Nowhere the Act contemplates that the aided schools should take prior permission before making appointment against sanctioned posts, whenever vacancies arose.
Allowing the petitions, the Judge directed the authorities to approve of the appointments of the non-teaching staff against the sanctioned posts in the aided schools and to grant aid to them.
