Bhubaneswar: The Orissa High Court has directed the state government to reappoint a high school teacher, who was terminated after 20 years of service, within three months, stating that “statutory authorities should shed the Macaulay mindset and colonial hangover while addressing the woes of citizens.”
As per the case records, Ramesh Chandra Parida, appointed as a Hindi teacher in December 1991, was terminated from service in 2004 on the grounds of unauthorised absence. The petitioner, Binodini Nayak, was appointed in 2008 against the vacancy arising from Parida’s termination.
However, Parida later challenged his dismissal. Although initially dismissed by the Orissa High Court, he was eventually reinstated following directions from the Supreme Court. As a result of Parida’s reinstatement, the petitioner, who had rendered more than 20 years of spotless service, was rendered jobless.
The district education officer of Balasore compassionately recommended August 23, 2024 that the petitioner be accommodated in a vacant post, citing her meritorious service. However, the Department of Secondary Education rejected the recommendation for her reappointment. “Ours is a constitutionally ordained welfare state. Therefore, the action of the state and its instrumentalities should abound with elements of fairness, reason, and justice,” Justice Dixit Krishna Shripad observed in the judgment, which ordered the approval of her appointment within a period of three months. “The authorities cannot mindlessly pass orders that strike at law, reason, and justice.
Human difficulties that arise through no fault of their own must be considered, and all reasonable efforts should be made to mitigate them — of course, within the framework of the law,” Justice Shripad stated in the verdict. “Otherwise, the government, in the sarcastic words of Jeremy Bentham, would be ‘but a band of robbers’. Statutory authorities should shed the Macaulay mindset and colonial hangover while addressing the woes of citizens,” the judge concluded.
