NON-REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPEAL    NO(S). 1868/2018

(ARISING FROM SLP (C) NO.34154/2016)

MUKESH KUMAR & ORS.                                APPELLANT(S)                                 VERSUS STATE OF BIHAR & ORS.                              RESPONDENT(S)

J U D G M E N T KURIAN, J.

Leave granted. 2. The appellants have worked under the Bihar School Examination  Board  (formerly  known  as  Bihar Intermediate Education Council) for around 23 years as of now.  The Bihar Intermediate Education Council Act,  1992  was  repealed  by  the  Bihar  Intermediate Education Council (Repeal) Act, 2007 (for short 'the Repeal Act').  Section 3 of the Repeal Act reads as under:-

“3.  Adjustment  of  employees  of  the  Bihar Intermediate Education Council. - (1) On and from  the  date  of  repeal  of  the  Bihar Intermediate  Education  Council  Act,  1992, all employees of the Council, shall remain, in employment, as if the Act has not been repealed and they shall continue to be paid same salary and allowances as was payable on the date of repeal of the Act till such time State  Government  has  taken  such  final decision as is provided hereinafter. (2) The State Government shall constitute a Committee of Secretaries consisting of three

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Secretaries  who  shall  prepare  a  detailed scheme of absorption, retirement, compulsory retirement  or  voluntary  retirement, screening  appointment  and  other  service conditions of employees of the Council. The scheme  prepared  by  the  Committee  of Secretaries  shall  be  placed  before  the Government within four months from the date of enforcement of the present Act: Provided  that  it  shall  be  open  to  the Government  to  modify,  amend  or  suggest modifications or amendment in the scheme and the  scheme  thereafter  shall  be  made operational  in  such  form  and  intent  as finally approved by the Government. Scheme approved  by  the  Government  shall  be considered as statutory scheme framed under this Act. (3)  After  the  scheme  approved  by  the Government  is  enforced  it  shall  be  fully implemented in its approved form and intent within  three  months  from  the  date  of  its enforcement. (4) The Committee of Secretaries constituted under  sub-section  (2)  of  Section  3  above shall  be  competent  to  decide  utility  and deployment  of  employees  of  the  Council during transition period and it shall not be open to any employee to question decision of Committee of Secretaries: Provided that the State Government shall be competent  to  amend,  modify,  alter  or substitute the scheme so framed for removal of any difficulty in its implementation.”

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3. Accordingly,  the  Education  Department  of  the Government  of  Bihar  considered  the  Report  of  the 3-Members Committee and it was resolved as follows, to the extent relevant :-

“I. Employees on which below listed action has  been  taken  at  the  time  of  the appointment will be adjusted in the vacant post  of  the  Bihar  School  examination committee.

a)  Appointment  being  held  by  the competent authority.

b) Advertisement was published for the appointment.

c)  Reservation  policy  was  being followed for the appointment.

d) Appointee must be qualified as per the requirement of the post.

e) Appointments were made against the acceptance and vacant post.

II. Employees which does not fall upon the abovementioned list will be adjusted in the Bihar School examination committee if they fulfills  the  below  mentioned  requirement laid by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Civil Appeal No.1968/2006 in case title State of Karnataka V/s Uma Devi.

a)  APPOINTMENT  BEING  HELD  BY  THE COMPETENT AUTHORITY.

b)  Till  the  date  of  Appointment  or repealment Appointments were made against the acceptance and vacant post.

c) Appointee must be qualified as per the requirement of the post.

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d) Must be completed minimum 10 years of service.

III.  Temporary  employee  of  the  dissolved council shall be adjusted on the basis of their  original  appointment  if  they fulfilled  the  abovementioned  conditions (Clause I and II).”

4. It appears, this Resolution was not implemented. However, there was another Committee constituted by the  Board  and  according  to  that  Committee  the appellants herein do not have the required service of even ten years. 5. We  find  it  difficult  to  appreciate  the  stand taken by the Board.  Once the Committee, as per the Act, has submitted a Report, it was for the State Government to act in terms of the Report.  For the implementation  of  the  Report,  there  was  no requirement for a further Committee.  We find from the  impugned  judgment  that  the  High  Court  has directed the State Government to consider the case of the appellants herein in the light of the Government Resolution. 6. Accordingly, this appeal is disposed of with a direction  to  the  State  Government  to  take  an appropriate decision in the light of the Scheme of the Repeal Act, the Report of the 3-Members Committee constituted under the Act and the Resolution taken based on the Report.  While taking the decision the Government will also keep in mind that the appellants have  as  of  now  worked  for  around  23  years.   The needful, as above, shall be done positively within a period of two months from today.

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7. Pending  applications,  if  any,  shall  stand disposed of. 8. There shall be no orders as to costs.

..........................J.               [KURIAN JOSEPH]  

..........................J.               [MOHAN M. SHANTANAGOUDAR]  NEW DELHI; FEBRUARY 13, 2018.

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