RAJASTHAN HIGH CHOURT CHIEF JUSTICE BENCH DECISION ON TET / and RECRUITMENT ON THE BASIS OF TET EXAM

RAJASTHAN HIGH CHOURT CHIEF JUSTICE BENCH DECISION ON TET / and RECRUITMENT ON THE BASIS OF TET EXAM



Rajasthan Highcourt Chief Justice Bench Decision, Rajasthan Highcourt,

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2013 mein TET KE SAMBANDH MEIN RAJASTHAN HIGH COURT KI CHIEF JUSTICE KEE BENCH DWARA DIYA GAYA NIRNAY.

RAJASTHAN HIGH COURT DECISION REGARDING TET EXAM AND RECRUITMENT ON THE BASIS OF THIS EXAM

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आरटेट 2011: हाईकोर्ट ने कहा 60% से कम वाले शिक्षक बनने योग्य नहीं

http://naukri-recruitment-result.blogspot.com

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IMPORTANT PARTS OF JUDGEMENT

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NOTE: WE PUBLISHED HERE IMPORTANT PORTIONS OF JUDGEMENT.

IT IS ADVISED TO READ OFFICIAL AUTHENTIC COPY FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDNG.

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The answering
respondents iterated that the NCTE permitted and granted relaxation upto 5%  to the candidates belonging to reserved category qua the  qualifying marks in the academic qualification i.e.senior secondary or it equivalent examination, graduation etc. only and that the said concession had no nexus at all with the pass marks to qualify the TET.



it was contended that relaxation upto 5% marks to the candidates belonging to the reserved category was with regard to the minimum marks specified in paragraph

(Iske Baad NCTE / RTE guidelines ke paragraph ka jikra hai )

it was not permissible for the State Government to grant relaxation beyond 5% in the qualifying marks for TET examination under the garb of Clause 9(a) of the guidelines dated 11.2.2011

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Asserting that the notification dated 11.5.2011 adjusting the reserved category candidates, who had availed the benefit of relaxations in the qualifying marks, against the quota of the general
category candidate is patently illegal, the petitioner has referred to circulars dated  17.6.1996, 4.3.2002 and 24.6.2008 of the Department of Personnel, Government of Rajasthan

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The migration of the reserved category candidates benefited by the concession qua qualifying marks for passing the TET into the portion of the unreserved category candidate, has been repudiated thus to be illegal, arbitrary and discriminatory.
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By an interim application, the petitioners have also brought on record the fact  that out of 40,000 posts of Teacher, only 20% candidates belonging to general category has been selected in view of the arbitrary and unallowable large scale relaxation granted to the candidates of reserved category in the qualifying marks for TET in gross violation of the NCTE guidelines resulting in induction of persons lower in merit thereby rendering the salutary and underlying objectives of the Act of 2009 nugatory.
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relaxation ranging from 10% to 20% and thus, all pleas to the contrary are wholly untenable and are liable to be rejected in limine.

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The learned counsel for the NCTE while adopting the arguments on behalf of the appellant-State referred to the Regulations of 2009 to justify   the   grant   of   5%   relaxation in the qualifying marks in the senior secondary/graduation examination. According to him, such relaxation not having been granted  in the notification dated 23.8.2010 laying down the minimum qualifications to be eligible for appointment as Teacher,  the same was permitted on representations being filed seeking such concession.
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The learned counsel endorsed the   empowerment   of   the   State Government as per guidelines dated 11.2.2011 to grant concession to the reserved category candidates as per its extant reservation policy
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Single Judge erred in dealing with the same while adjudicating the issues raised in the writ proceedings.

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concession contemplated in the guidelines dated 11.2.2011  was distinctly different from that notification dated 29.7.2011 and operated in independent domains.

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the relaxation in  the qualifying percentage of pass therein, is an apparent compromise with this salutary objective and thus, the concession ranging from 10% to 20% as accorded by the State Government is impermissible and invalid
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Referring to the notification dated 29.7.2011, Mr.Shah emphatically urged that the  relaxation upto 5% in the qualifying marks did signify in no uncertain terms that no
candidate securing less than 55% marks could have been declared to have passed TET
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He urged as well that the candidates, who had secured marks between 55% to 60% on availing such relaxation could not be accommodated against the seats identified for unreserved category, as the same, if permitted, would denote compromise on merit, a consequence extinctive of the cardinal objectives of the Act of 2009.

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the reserved category candidates availing the benefit of concession in qualifying marks could not have been accommodated against the seats meant for open category candidates. The learned counsel urged in
this backdrop that the circular no.F.7(1)DOP/A-II/99 dated 11.5.2011 of the Department of Personnel,
Government of Rajasthan permitting such migration is non est or in the alternative, has a prospective effect and could not have been applied to the selection process in hand.
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With the insertion of Article 21A in the Constitution of India by the Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 making it obligatory for the State to provide free and compulsory education to all children  of   the age of six to fourteen years, in  a manner, as prescribed by a statute law to the effect i.e. Act 2009 was enacted, to effectuate this ordainment of the National Charter.
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Section 23 thereof deals with qualifications for appointment and terms and  conditions of service of
teachers and endows the academic authority authorized by the Central Government by notification to prescribe the same, so as to be eligible for  appointment as such. That the NCTE is this academic  authority, as envisaged in Section 23(1) of the Act 2009, is a matter of record.

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The NCTE followed up this edict by a letter No.76- 4/2010/NCTE/Acad dated 11.2.2011 addressed to all the Secretaries and Commissioners of the State Governments/UTs, thereby circulating its guidelines for conducting the TET by the  appropriate Government, as required by its notification dated 23.8.2010.
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While reiterating the mandate of a pass in the TET to be a norm of eligibility, rationale therefor was enumerated as hereunder:-
“(i) It would bring national standards and benchmark of teacher quality in the recruitment
process;
(ii) It would induce teacher education institutions and students from these institutions to further improve their performance standards;
(iii) It would send a positive signal to all stakeholders that the Government lays special
emphasis on teacher quality.” 
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“Qualifying marks.-
9. A person who scores 60% or more in the TET exam will be considered as TET pass. School
managements (Government, local bodies, government aided and unaided)
(a) may consider giving concessions to persons belonging to SC/ST, OBC, differently
abled persons, etc., in accordance with their extant reservation policy;
(b) should give weightage to the TET scores in the recruitment process; however, qualifying the TET would not confer a right on any person for recruitment/employment as it is only one of the eligibility criteria for appointment.”
The   above   extract   would   proclaim   that   in   terms   of the guidelines of the NCTE, a   candidate  who  would   score 60% or more in the TET,  would be construed to have
passed the same. Liberty was however, accorded to the School management (Government, local bodies, government aided and unaided) to grant concessions to the persons belonging to SC/ST,OBC, differently disabled etc., in accordance with their extant reservation policy.
 Clause 9(b) though, made it obligatory to provide weightage to the TET scores in the recruitment process clarified however, that a pass in the TET would not per se confer a right on any person for recruitment/employment, as such a pass was one of the eligibility criteria for appointment. Clause 9 of the guidelines thus, present the following salient features :-
(a) A candidate to pass the TET examination normally, has to score 60% or more;
(b) School managements (Government, locabodies, government aided and unaided) may grant
concessions to the persons belonging to SC/ST,OBC, differently abled persons etc., in accordance
with their extant reservation policy;
(c) weightage has to be given to the TET scores in the recruitment process;
(d) a pass in the TET examination would ipso facto not confer a right on any candidate for
recruitment/employment.
(e) a pass in the TET Examination was one of the eligibility criteria for appointment/recruitment as a
teacher.
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A candidate who thus, pass the TET would be eligible to participate in a process
of recruitment to the post of a teacher in both the levels, provided he/she is possessed of the academic
qualifications prescribed therefor and would further be entitled to weightage of the marks scored by him/her in the TET examination, if he/she passes the same.
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While 60% or more marks was prescribed for a pass in the said test for the general category candidates, concessions to the   extent   as   set   out   in   the letter dated 23.3.2011, were accorded to the three classes of reserved category candidates mentioned therein

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In Item No.(ii) of this paragraph, under the caption “Reservation Policy”,   it   was   provided   that   relaxation   upto 5% in the qualifying marks would be allowed to the candidates belonging to  the reserved categories i.e.SC/ST/OBC/PH.
Whereas, the respondent-State insists that this relaxation is qua the minimum marks in the qualifying
examination of senior secondary/graduation etc.
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A cursory perusal of the contents of this quote would demonstrate that paragraph 3  of the notification dated 23.8.2010 dealt exclusively with the aspect of NCTE recognized 6-months Special Programme in Elementary Education by way of training of the persons with qualifications mentioned therein, after appointment. There was neither any comprehension nor any provision for reservation or relaxation of marks

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Academic qualifications with minimum percentage of marks was
however, referred to.
In the amended paragraph 3, introduced by the notification dated 29.7.2011, apart from modified
academic qualifications with percentage of marks, relaxation upto 5% in the qualifying marks was provided for the candidates belonging to the reserved categories, such as SC/ST/OBC/PH. The texts of the two paragraphs of the notifications dated 23.8.2010 and 29.7.2011 when juxtaposed, in our estimate,  connote that the concession of 5% in the qualifying marks pertains to the percentage
of marks in the qualifying examination of Senior Secondary/Graduation etc
and not to the percentage of pass marks in TET

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clarifying that following the issuance of the notification dated 23.8.2010, it had received representations from   the   State   Government   and other stakeholders that in respect of SCs/STs etc.
relaxation upto 5% in the qualifying marks should be allowed, since such relaxation is permissible by the NCTE for admission in various  teacher education courses.

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it was elucidated that following its meeting held on 16.3.2011 it was decided that relaxation upto 5% in such qualifying marks would be available to SCs/STs etc., in accordance with the extant policy of the State Government /UTs and other school managements. There is no reference of such relaxation to pass marks in the TET.
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Relaxation upto 5% in the qualifying marks in the amended paragraph 3 of the notification dated 23.8.2010, in our comprehension, is thus wholly unrelated to the percentage of pass marks in the TET.
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The notification dated 29.7.2011 having regard to the scheme and purport thereof has to be essentially co-related with the one dated 23.8.2010,
which originally did not contemplate any relaxation.
Logically, thus, this notification does not supersede the guidelines dated 11.2.2011 governing the conduct of the TET.
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relaxation referred to therein does not relate to the percentage of marks to be secured in the TET to pass the same, cannot be construed to be in supersession either of the guidelinesdated 11.2.2011 or the letter dated 23.3.2011 of the
State Government.