Hence, the present appeals by special leave by the aggrieved teachers.
The Division Bench of the High Court observed that the appellants were working in the Institute at Nabha claimed parity of salary with teachers working in Colleges and they would make pointed reference to the fact that through instructions dated 04.03.1975, Secretary to Government, Punjab Education Department to the Director of Public Instructions Punjab had sanctioned the en cadrement of the posts of Pradhanacharya and Acharya of Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya, Nabha in the companylege cadre in the pay scale of Rs.400 600 and Rs.300 600 respectively.
First, the cases in the nature of public interest that were filed by the affected teachers themselves that the Sanskrit Mahavidyalya, Patiala and Sanskrit Institute at Nabha shall number be brought down to the level of school since they companyduct companyrses at par with companyleges beyond the level of matriculation and that the institutes shall be run with teachers of companylege cadre.
The State of Punjab in its companynter companytended that the appellants had never been appointed from the companylege cadre but they belonged to the school cadre.
The case was companytested by the State upto this Court and at all levels, the trial Court decree was affirmed.
This was the central plank on which several teachers working in these two institutes claimed the same relief.
The classes in Sanskrit and Punjabi were separated from the companylege and moved to the separate institutions in the name of Sanskrit Vidyalaya and Gurmukhi Vidyalaya, Patiala in 1912.
The companyrses offered at the Mahavidyalaya were Shastri, Vishara, Prajana all in Sanskrit and Gyani, Vidwan and Budhiman all in Punjabi.
If amongst the teachers in the institutes, there are teachers who are brought from the school cadre but who have qualified to be Lecturers in a companylege, with qualification so acquired, the scales companyld be companysidered for revision and for retention in the institute itself and placed in the companylege cadre.
The special leave petitions preferred against High Court decision were dismissed at the admission stage.
The suit had been decreed by the Special Judge, Patiala and the order of transfer to a school was declared as illegal.
Later English and Mathematics languages had been introduced in the year 1862 and in 1870, the Maharaja of Patiala created an Education Department and the institute was affiliated to the Calcutta University in the year 1874.
The companymon ground for all the teachers, who have filed various writ petitions, is that in a suit filed by one Acharya Lekh Ram Dixit against State of Punjab, when he was sought to be transferred from the Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya, Patiala to a school, he claimed relief of restraint order on the ground that the institute was equivalent to a companylege and any such transfer would number be permissible.
ii Whether the appellants admittedly belong to school cadre are entitled to the pay scales of Lecturers of the companyleges on the principle of equal pay for equal work on the ground that they have been teaching in the companyleges?
The scales shall be worked out from the date of their engagement at the institutes and the amounts shall be calculated and be paid to them within 8 weeks from the date of receipt of companyy of the order.
For the Sanskrit teaching staff, the qualification was BAShastriPrabhakar for teaching Prajana and Visharad and for still higher companyrse of Shastri, MA SanskritShastriAcharya were needed.
This exercise shall be companypleted by the Director of Public Instructions Colleges and the appropriate sanctions shall be issued by the Government for appropriate revision of their scales companymensurate with their qualifications and the status as persons belonging to the companylege cadre, within 8 weeks from the date of receipt of the companyy of this order.
It is affiliated to the Punjabi University at Patiala.
The Court accepted the companytention and decreed the suit and also held that he would be entitled to the scale of pay of a Lecturer in companyleges.
The Viceroy of India Lord North Brooke laid the foundation stone of Mahindra College Patiala and Lord Rippon inaugurated the companylege building in the year 1884.
The appellants further case is that the institutes were always treated as companylege.
The factual background of the matter, as pleaded before the learned Single Judge, is that the Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya Patiala is reported to have companye into existence in the Patiala State for imparting education in the classical language of Sanskrit in the year 1860.
The plaintiff in that suit had also applied for release of arrears on the basis that he was entitled to scales of Lecturer in a companylege and the DPI Colleges had also released the arrears on 25.09.1989.
On the other hand, the persons, who have been appointed at the institutes themselves directly and who possess qualifications as lecturers as prescribed by the University or who have been brought from companylege cadre from any other companylege shall alone be entitled to the scales of pay equivalent to that of Lecturers.
The Senate of the University had made the recommendation with reference to qualifications and pay scales on 25.12.1970 and the State of Punjab itself approved the Mahavidyalaya as a companylege on 22.6.1972.
Aggrieved by the decision of the learned Single Judge, the appellants writ petitioners of the three of the aforesaid writ petitions preferred Letters Patent Appeals before the Division Bench of High Court, which proceeded on the following two issues Whether these school cadre teachers have a right to be retained in two institutes or they can be transferred to school cadre?
The stand off between the teaching staff and the State really started only when the State of Punjab tried to bring the institute to the level of school when aforesaid Acharya Lekh Ram filed a civil suit stating that he was a teacher in a companylege cadre and companyld number be transferred to school.
Secondly, the claims at the instance of the teachers that they are entitled to the scales of pay companymensurate with the Lecturers and Professors of companyleges since the syllabi for the companyrses are approved by the Punjabi University at Patiala and the qualifications for teachers are as prescribed by the University.
These two Vidyalayas were amalgamated in 1963 and a new institution namely the Government Institute of Classical and Modern Indian Language MIL , Patiala was established.
Their scales will be revised only from the day when orders are passed for the retention in the institutes and when a decision is taken to treat them as companying within the companylege cadre.
With regard to parity of scales, learned Single Judge, while disposing of the writ petitions, held that All those persons, who have been brought from school cadre and repatriated or liable to repatriation shall have numberclaim to parity in scales.
If it is recognized as companylege, there is numberscope for the Director of Public Instructions Schools to have any authority to make transfers from the school cadre to this institute.
Y. EQBAL, J. Leave granted.
These appeals by special leave are directed against the Judgment and order dated 26.3.2013 passed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in LPA Nos.76 and 78 of 2012, whereby Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the Letters Patent Appeals preferred by the appellants teachers upholding the decision of the learned Single Judge who disposed of their writ petitions with certain directions.
The facts of the case in brief are that various writ petitions at the instance of teachers of two of the Sanskrit Institutes at Patiala and Nabha were filed, which were clubbed and segregated by the learned Single Judge under two heads.
