Beneficial provision must be invoked even if recipients have not asked for it: Karnataka High Court

A division bench comprising Chief Justice NV Anjaria and Justice SG Pandit noted it while dismissing the petition filed by the education department.

Bengaluru: The Dharwad bench of the Karnataka High Court said that a beneficial provision incorporated in the statute has to be given effect to in favour of the beneficiaries, irrespective of the aspect whether the beneficiary has made an application in that regard or not.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice NV Anjaria and Justice SG Pandit said this while dismissing the petition filed by the education department.

Two teachers, Umadevi Hundekar and Prabhavati Ronad were included in the transfer list of surplus teachers. Umadevi Hundekar who worked as ‘Worker Teacher’ at Girls Government Degree College at Bagalkot and at present serving as sewing teacher at Government High School at Boodihal is aged 55 years and Prabhavati Ronad a faculty member of VM Government High School, Teggi is 58 years old when the order was issued.

The teachers approached the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (KSAT), Belagavi challenging the December 26, 2022 notification, issued by the Commissioner of Public Instructions. The notification was issued as per the provision of rationalization under section 4 (1) of the Karnataka State Civil Services (Regulation of Transfer of Teachers) Act and Rules. The provision states that in respect of the excess posts which may be found in one school will be redeployed to another school where there is a deficit.

The teachers had argued that under section 10 (1) (6) of the very Act an exemption is provided from rationalisation, zonal transfer and priority for requests transfers. It was argued by the teachers that they were exempted from the transfer list of surplus teachers for having attained the age of 50 years and above. The tribunal allowed the applications filed by the teachers observing that the rationalisation of posts on pupil-teacher ratio has to go hand in hand with section 10.

The state government moved the high court challenging this order. The division bench noted that the authorities are duty bound to give effect to and extend the benefit under section 10 (1) (6) to the eligible teachers.

“Whenever a beneficial provision is incorporated in the statute, it has to be given effect to in favour of the beneficiaries by the authorities concerned, irrespective of the aspect whether the beneficiary has made an application in that regard or not. As a statutory provision of the kind and nature as found in Section 10(1)(vi) of the Act of 2020 becomes a right of the employee teacher to be governed and to be benefited thereby,” the court said.