Gauhati High Court: Teachers not obliged to submit choice by January 30

Regularization of contractual teachers

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court has deferred the hearing of a petition filed by Sadou Axom Prathamik Tet Uttirno Sikshak Samaj, saying the contractual teachers are not bound to submit their choice of terms by the deadline of January 30, 2024.

The submission of such an option is contrary to the law laid down by the Supreme Court, it was pointed out. The single-judge bench of Justice Soumitra Saikia took cognizance of the petitioners' grievance at the state government's communication whereby the teachers working as contractual teachers in the state pool are required to submit voluntary options for either regularization of services with an initial scale of pay benefits from the proposed date of joining that will be fixed in due course or continuing as contractual teachers with the existing financial benefits and service conditions. This option was directed to be submitted in the model format enclosed to the said communication by 5 p.m. on January 30, 2024. Advocate Choudhury, the petitioners' counsel, submitted that the submission of such an option is contrary to the law laid down by the Apex Court.

The Court stated that it had earlier passed an order on January 25, 2024 in WP(C) No. 7223/2019 and other connected matters and the pending I.A.s that the instructions in the communication will not automatically be applicable in respect of those petitioner(s) who are rendering their services as contractual teachers under the said pool teachers, and it is submitted that the petitioners herein are also suitably situated. The bench directed that the petitioners will not be compelled to submit this option in terms of this communication by the deadline fixed, which is January 30, 2024.

The court has decided to hear the petition along with similar writ petitions, including WP(C) No. 7223/2019, on Tuesday, January 30.

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