AMN /
In a major setback to the Uttar Pradesh government, the Allahabad High Court today quashed all absorption of shiksha mitra (teaching assistants) as regular Assistant Teachers in the primary schools in the state.
In a landmark judgment the three judge full bench headed by chief justice D.Y.Chandrachud also declared the amendments made by the state government in 2014 as unconstitutional.
The state government had amended the rule to pave the way for absorbing about 1 lakh 70 thousand shiksha mitras as regular teachers.
The court observed that the minimum qualification and other parameters have been decided by the Central Government through National Council of Teachers Education Act (NCTE) and for any relaxation in the rule power lies with central government only and state could not violate this.
According to reports about 1 lakh 25 thousand shiksha mitra has already been absorbed as Assistant Teachers and absorption for rest of shiksha mitra was under process.
The High Court has said that Uttar Pradesh Government has misused its power while absorbing Shiksha Mitra as assistant teachers.
The court also underlined that state government changed the parameters framed by National Council of Teachers Education (NCTE) .
Though the state government has no constitutional power to change these rules. The full bench headed by chief justice D.Y.Chandrachud also made harsh comment on state government while commenting that there is big difference between illegal appointment and irregular appointment.
The court also observed that illegal appointment could not be made a regular appointment.
Therfore all the appointments of shikshamitra are illegal. Court also clarified that training received through distance education by Shiksha Mitra are also unconstitutional.
Court observed that to become a primary teacher passing Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) is mandatory.
Shiksha Mitra scheme on contract and honorarium basis was started from 1999 in Uttar Pradesh.