This order dismissed a contempt petition filed against educational officers for alleged wilful disobedience of an earlier directive. The Court held that since a reasoned order was passed by respondents, the contempt proceeding is dropped without examining the merits.
The contempt proceeding is dropped.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
Cont. Case (Civil) No. 458 of 2022
1.Maqsood Zafar Hadi 2.Afsarul Abdin .... .. ... Petitioner(s) Versus
2.Chandan Kumar Sinha, Deputy Commissioner, Ranchi. 3.Upendra Nath Thakur, District Superintendent of Education, Ranchi. .. ... ...Opp. Party(s)
CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE GAUTAM KUMAR CHOUDHARY
For the Petitioner(s) : Mr. Amit Kr. Tiwari, Advocate For the State : Mr. Manish Kumar, Sr.S.C.II AC to Sr.S.C.II
1. The instant Contempt case has been filed for initiation of proceeding of Contempt of Court and suitable punishment to Opp. Party for wilful disobedience of Hon’ble Court’s order dated 27.11.2019 passed Hon’ble Mr. Justice Dr. S. N. Pathak in W.P.(S) No.3090 of 2017 whereby and whereunder the Opp. Parties were directed to take decision on the candidature of the petitioner(s) in light of order passed in W.P.(S) No.2691 of 2015 within a period of six weeks from the date of receipt of copy of this order.
2. Petitioners are teachers in Government school and they approached this Hon’ble Court for direction upon the respondent(s) to promote them from due date of promotion on the post of Grade IV Scale with effect from 01.04.2003 in accordance with the provisions of Elementary School Teachers Promotion Rule, 1993, as they are getting Grade-I (basic Trained) Scale since their initial date of joining i.e. 09.09.1994 and completed 8 years of satisfactory service in Grade-I and to shift the date of their promotion from 30.12.2016 to the date on which they have completed their 8 years of service in Grade-I from the date of joining i.e. 09.09.1994 and also to extend the benefit of Grade-IV scale taking into consideration of their promotion with effect from 01.04.20003 as well as arrear of salaries thereof.
3. It is submitted that similarly situated persons approached this Honourable Court by filing writ petition being W.P.(S) No.2691 of 2015 which was disposed of on 19.03.2018 where similar issue has been decide by this Hon’ble Court after considering the relevant facts.
4. After hearing the matter, this Hon’ble Court vide order dated 27.11.2019 has disposed of the writ application being W.P.(s) No.3090 of 2017 directing the respondent(s) to decide the issue within 6 weeks in terms of order passed in W.P.(S) No.2691 of 2015.
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5. The petitioners have approached respondent(s) by filing the representation along with copy of the order before the respondent(s) on 10.02.2020.
6. The District Superintendent of Education, Ranchi vide Memo No.2929 dated 08.10.2021 has complied with the order, but only with respect to only two petitioners of the said Writ Petition, namely, Dinesh Prasad Keshri and Qumar Zia as both find their names at Srl. Nos.6 and 7 respectively in the aforesaid order and left the name of rest two writ petitioners who are petitioners in the instant Contempt Petition.
7. Petitioners are senior to the persons who were given benefit of promotion and as such, petitioners again represented before the respondents for redressal of grievance by filing a detailed representation dated 20.10.2021.
8. The Opp. Party even after lapse of six weeks from the date of representation i.e. 20.10.2021 has not complied with the order within next six weeks, as such, a wilful contempt has been done by the Opp. Party(s) from 15.12.2021 or whenever as till date order has not been complied with.
9. Learned counsel on behalf of the opposite party submits that order under contempt has been complied with, in much the case of the present petitioners along with others, have been considered, and a reasoned order has been passed and the order has been complied with, therefore the instant contempt case be dropped.
10. It will be desirable to extract the operative part of the order under contempt of
“ 4. In view of fair submissions of the learned Counsel for the parties and considering the facts that similar issue as already been decided by this Court In W.P.(S) No.2961 of 2015 with detailed order and since this writ petition is also covered by the said decision, the same is being disposed of in terms of orders passed therein.
5. Accordingly, in view of aforesaid judicial pronouncements, the case of present petitioner should also be considered. The Respondents are directed to take a decision in this regard and if the case of the petitioners is found to be same and similar to that of petitioners in W.P.(S) No.2961 of 2015, similarly relief may be granted to the present writ petitioners also in accordance with law, within a period of six weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
6. Needless to say that if the petitioners are not found entitled for the same, a reasoned order will be passed and communicated to the petitioners, within a further period of two weeks. ”
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Under the circumstance this Court is of the view that it cannot in into the merit of the order passed in compliance to the order under contempt. Whether the case of the petitioners are same and similar to that of the petitioners in W.P.(S) No.2961 of 2015 cannot be looked into in the contempt proceeding. In view of the fact that it isn’t order has been passed pursuant to the order, this Court Is of the view that the order has been complied with.
Under the circumstance the contempt proceeding is dropped.
Sandeep/uploaded
2 issues framed by the court
Whether the respondents have willfully disobeyed the High Court order dated 27.11.2019 which directed them to take a decision on the petitioners' candidature.
Whether the High Court can examine the merits of the order passed by the respondents in compliance to avoid contempt proceedings.
Maqsood Zafar Hadi
Afsarul Abdin
The State of Jharkhand
Chandan Kumar Sinha
Upendra Nath Thakur
Gautam Kumar Choudhary
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
