Diploma in Education (Urdu) not a pre-requisite: HC

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1

In a judgment that will benefit candidates for nearly 500 posts of JBT (Urdu) teacher in Mewat district of Haryana, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that the Diploma in Education (Urdu) was not a pre-requisite; and candidates possessing qualifications prescribed under the Haryana Primary Education (Group-C) District Cadre Service Rules, 1994, were eligible.

The qualifications prescribed for the post under the 1994 Rules include matriculation from the board or its equivalent, two years JBT course or the Diploma in Education Training course from the Haryana Education Department or its equivalent and knowledge of Urdu up to matriculation.

The ruling by Justice Rajesh Bindal came on a bunch of petitions filed by Dinesh Kumar and other petitioners. They had contended that an advertisement was issued in March, 2012, for filling 544 posts of JBT (Urdu) teacher for Mewat district. The petitioners claimed that they were eligible. But in June, 2012, they were informed about the rejection of their applications as they had not cleared two-year D.Ed. (Urdu) examination.

Taking up the matter, Justice Bindal asserted: “The candidature of the petitioners in the present set of cases has been rejected only on the ground that they do not possess the two-year D.Ed (Urdu) qualification as prescribed in the advertisement.

“Once the aforesaid qualification has not been prescribed in the rules as one of the essential qualifications, the rejection of candidature of the petitioners on that ground cannot be sustained and they are entitled to be considered for appointment against the post of JBT teachers”.

Disposing of the petition, Justice Bindal added the outright rejection of their applications was illegal and could not be sustained in the Court of law. There may be other similarly situated persons possessing qualification prescribed in the Rules, but not having D.Ed. (Urdu).

Quoting the stand taken by counsel for the state that only 75 posts were filled, Justice Bindal said all candidates possessing the qualification prescribed in the 1994 Rules deserved to be considered.

1,000 primary teachers face FIRs 

The Haryana Education Department has decided to register an FIR against approximately 1,000 primary teachers found guilty of impersonation in forensic examination. The High Court was told that the district elementary education officers had been directed to register the FIR after completing the process of terminating their services. The Haryana Government has already initiated the process of terminating the services of no less than 776 teachers. Around 8,200 JBT teachers, selected by the state government in 2009, were facing verification process by the state education board after a petition was filed in public interest on the issue. It was argued that the Haryana Teachers Eligibility Test certificates of several candidates were found to be obtained through impersonation in the previous selection list of JBT teachers in the state.