MADURAI: Citing contradictions in the interim orders passed by the Madras High Court's Principal Seat and its Madurai Bench in the petitions filed over temporary appointment of teachers in Tamil Nadu, Justice MS Ramesh of the Madurai Bench on Thursday referred the petitions to the Chief Justice, to be placed either before one of the two single benches or before a larger bench.
Justice Ramesh said that despite the interim stay granted by him for the selection process on July 1, the State government went ahead and received applications for the vacant posts in the districts that come under the jurisdiction of the Principal Seat by citing an order passed by a single judge of the Principal Seat in a similar petition on the same day.
The judge observed that though both the Madurai Bench and the Principal Seat had passed the interim orders by taking into account the welfare of the students, the government attempted to distinguish the two orders by applying the directions, issued by each of the two courts, only to the districts that fall within the jurisdiction of the respective courts. "This is, apparently, incorrect," the judge held and referred the matter to the Chief Justice.
TET Passed Candidates Welfare Association in Madurai had approached the Madurai Bench challenging a notification issued by the State government on June 23, 2022, permitting temporary appointment of BT (Bachelor of Teaching) assistants, secondary grade teachers and post graduate teachers in schools, on the ground that minimum qualification of passing TET had not been made mandatory.
Though revised guidelines were issued by the government on July 1, another petition was filed by M Parvatham of Karur before the Madurai Bench challenging the revised notification. Both have now been referred to the Chief Justice.