CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court has ordered a prestigious private school of Gurgaon to pay an amount of Rs 50 lakh to a couple who were “illegally” sacked by the school management from the posts of teachers in the schools seven years back. Three children of the couple who were getting free education in the school were also removed by the management of the school—M/s G D Goenka School Gurgaon. In this case the couple Parveen Shekhawat and her husband Ajay Singh Shekhawat were sacked by the school in 2015.“Keeping in view the fact that there has been bad blood between the management and the respondents’ employees in as much as three of their children had also been forced to leave the school where they were getting free education on account of the employment of their parents. The ends of justice would be served if Parveen Shekhawat is paid a total amount of Rs 20 lakh and her husband Ajay Singh Shekhawat is paid a total of Rs 30 lakh as compensation on account of the illegal action of the school management in terminating their services without any enquiry,” the HC has ordered.Court has also made it clear that in case the compensation is not paid by the school management within a period of one month, the couple would be free to enforce the orders of their reinstatement.The HC observed that it is to be noticed that on account of the illegal termination of the couple, their three children would have faced harassment and humiliation on account of the fact that their parents had been unceremoniously shunted out of the school. “The psychological impact of which cannot be gauged in any manner,” observed the HC.Division bench comprising Justice G S Sandhawalia and Justice Harpreet Kaur Jeewan of the HC has passed these orders while dismissing the appeal filed by M/S G D Goenka School Gurgaon.In its appeal, the school management had challenged the order dated December 8, 2017 passed by the appellate Tribunal comprising of the district Judge under the Haryana Education Act, 2003 and the subsequent order passed by a single judge of the HC. The district judge, Gurugram came to the conclusion that the employees who are husband and wife were confirmed employees and the termination was done on the basis of the notices which had been issued prior to the amendment of the Staff Service Regulations.The show cause notices as such were issued whereby the performance of the employees was held to be substandard and the children of the school were not happy on account of which the notices had been served was the alleged ground for termination of services of the employees. “The same having been scrutinized showed that there was only one month notice given whereas in the appointment letter dated August 17, 2004 and in the confirmation letter, the period of notice was required to be of three months,” tribunal had held observing that the action of the appellant-management was to the detriment to the interest of the employees.The tribunal had also held that the policy of ‘hire and fire’ and of acting with whimsical and capricious attitude was detrimental to the employees and violative of the principles of natural justice.At least a regular domestic enquiry should have been initiated against the employees and they should have been given an opportunity to face and join inquiry before the services could be terminated on the principle of fair hearing, equity and Justice, the tribunal had held.Aggrieved to this, the school management had approached the HC. The main argument of the management was that the power to set aside the dismissal order did not vest with the Tribunal.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/hc-orders-gurugram-school-to-pay-rs-50-lakh-compensation-to-a-couple-teacher-for-illegal-dismissal/articleshow/96792162.cms