NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court today asked the Delhi government to come out with a “logical and legal” solution for filling up vacancy of teachers in schools. The court said it was not averse to guest teachers but was concerned about everyone’s interest. “Come out with something logical and legal. Come with any other alternative. Court is not averse to guest teachers. This is being done to make the government work fast and things must move fast. It should be legally feasible. Court is concerned with everybody’s interest but the solution should be legal,” Justice A K Chawla said.
The court also said its interim order staying the process of appointing guest teachers and promoting those appointed since 2010 in Delhi government schools shall continue.
The court had earlier directed the government to maintain status quo with regard to fresh appointment and promotion of guest teachers as regulars in its schools, after it was informed that the authorities have not complied with the high court’s 2001 order.
During the hearing, Delhi government standing counsel Ramesh Singh said if the guest teachers are regularised, the vacancies would be automatically filled.
He said a bill was recently passed in the Delhi Legislative Assembly to regularise all guest teachers appointed since 2010.
The division bench in its 2001 order had asked the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) to ensure zero vacancy of teachers in schools on the commencement of each academic year.
The court was hearing a contempt plea by NGO Social Jurist, represented through advocate Ashok Aggarwal, seeking a stay on the order of the DSSSB withdrawing a notice on appointment of 8,914 school teachers.
During today’s hearing, Aggarwal said the appointment of guest teachers were illegal and contrary to the high court’s earlier order which had discouraged such appointment and they should be regularised through the board. He also said that if such appointments are allowed to continue, regular teachers will never be appointed.
The submission, however, was opposed by the counsel for guest teachers who said it was factually incorrect that the appointments were illegal as they were done through a proper channel where advertisements were issued by the government.
The Delhi government had introduced the DSSSB with the purpose of recruiting capable, competent and highly-skilled individuals by conducting written tests, professional tests and personal interviews.
The NGO has claimed that “unfortunately, the directions have never been complied with, resulting in accumulation of vacancies of teaching posts since 2011. No attempt has been made by the DSSSB for last several years to fill up the posts and provide regular teachers.”
The plea said after a high court order of April 11, the DSSSB issued vacancy notice on August 7 inviting applications from candidates for 8,914 teaching posts in the Directorate of Education of the Delhi government and for 5,906 teaching posts in the three municipal corporation schools here.
It alleged that the DSSSB, without informing or seeking permission from the court, had on August 24 “abruptly withdrawn the advertisement” regarding these vacancies.
“The respondents have been deliberately and for some political motives delaying recruitment of regular teachers to the detriment of the interest of as many as 23 lakh students studying in schools run by the Government of Delhi and three municipal corporations,” the plea has said.
PTI