The high court on Friday upheld a schoolteacher's right to pursue higher education, quashing a government circular that prevented teachers in state-aided schools from enriching their skills by adding degrees.
Justice Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya gave 15 days to Moneswarpur Shibdurga Samity High School, on the northern fringes of the city, to allow assistant teacher Amarendra Narayan Pal to pursue a postgraduate correspondence course in history.
"This is a landmark judgment as it will allow many teachers to pursue higher education. The judge observed while striking down the circular that education is one's fundamental right," said Uttam Majumdar, the lawyer who represented Pal.
Pal, an honours graduate in history, had mentioned in his petition that the school had denied him permission to continue with the Rabindra Bharati University course he had enrolled in before joining work, citing a circular of the school education department issued in November 27, 2007.
The circular stated that graduate teachers would not be allowed to study a postgraduate course.
"Any managing committee of any school recommending such cases or any district inspector of schools granting such prayer (of a teacher) will be treated as an offender under the West Bengal Schools (Control of Expenditure) Act, 2005," read the circular, a copy of which is with Metro.
Government-aided schools in Bengal have three categories of teachers — graduate, honours graduate and postgraduate — with different salary structures (see chart).
Tapabrata Chakrabarty, who appeared for the school education department, said the circular had been issued to protect the interests of the students and the government.
"The primary reason for issuing the circular was to curtail expenditure and prevent exodus of teachers. Several teachers had claimed higher salaries after acquiring degrees, while some left the job after completing higher education. Besides, students are bound to suffer if teachers remain busy pursuing their academic interests," Chakrabarty said.
A professor of history at Calcutta University dubbed the argument "regressive" and saw in it a mindset bent on encouraging mediocrity in education.
"Education broadens one's horizon. Students will be the ultimate beneficiaries if teachers keep expanding their knowledge," the teacher said.
He felt the CPM had a vested interest in issuing the circular as it could not keep the teachers under its thumb if they shone academically.
"The party has pursued this policy for long and that explains why the state's academic standards have fallen so low," he said.
Pal sat for the school service examination in 2006, following in the footsteps of countless graduates in the state. He cracked the test and was appointed in a school on November 1, 2007.
But since he was unsure about the results, he had by then enrolled in Rabindra Bharati University's postgraduate correspondence course in history.
After joining work, he sought permission to continue with his studies but the school authorities sat on his plea.
Last July, the management finally informed him about the circular and turned down his request.
"My client gave an undertaking to the authorities that he would not claim a higher pay-scale after becoming an MA. Nor would his studies come in the way of his teaching in the school. But the management still denied him permission to complete the course, " said counsel Majumdar.
Friday's verdict, he added, would set a precedent and unshackle other teachers keen on pursuing higher education.
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