Bombay High Court: Apetition was filed against the rejection of petitioners’ transfer from an unaided establishment to an aided establishment, as they acquired the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) qualification in the year 2021 which was after the statutory cut-off date of 31-3-2019. The Division Bench of Ravindra V. Ghuge* and Gautam A. Ankhad, JJ., opined that the Supreme Court judgment in the case Anjuman Ishaat-e-Taleem Trust v. State of Maharashtra 2025 SCC OnLine SC 1912 (Anjuman Trust case) did not reveal the fate of the candidates who either did not qualify the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET)/ CTET exam or had qualified it only after it was made statutorily mandatory but before 1-9-2025. Therefore, the Court held that dictum of the Anjuman Trust case (Supra) must be followed. Thus, the candidates who had acquired the required qualifications before the said judgment was passed i.e. on 1-9-2025, could continue their service and the candidates who did not acquire those qualifications shall be given 2 years to acquire the same.
Accordingly, the petitioners were held to be entitled for approval of the transfer and the order refusing the said approval on account of failing to acquire TET qualification prior to 31-3-2019 was quashed and set aside. Additionally, the authorities concerned were directed to pass fresh order.
Background
Petitioner 1 was appointed as a teacher in an unaided division in the school on 1-9-2013. He did not hold TET qualification at that time of his appointment as mandated by National Council for Teachers Education (NCTE), but he cleared the CTET examination in the year 2021.
Petitioner 2 was appointed on 1-8-2013 and her appointment was also approved. She did not possess the TET qualification but later cleared the CTET examination in 2021.
State of Maharashtra had made the TET qualification mandatory for all the teachers with effect from the year 2013 and had set the cut-off date as 31-3-2019 for acquiring such qualification. Anyone who was unable to acquire the required qualification by the cut-off date could not continue their employment.
Further in 2017, the Parliament amended the provision of Right to Education Act, 2017 which specified the cut-off date for qualifying the TET qualification as 31-3-2015 and extended the said period by 4 years making the new effective cut-off date as 31-3-2019.
Meanwhile, the teachers who were dismissed from service for not acquiring the mandatory qualifications had approached the Supreme Court in the case Anjuman Trust case (Supra), wherein, the Court gave various guidelines and directions for the fate of the teachers who had not acquired the necessary qualifications.
In the light of the judgment passed by the Supreme Court, an order was passed which rejected petitioners’ transfer approval from the unaided establishment to the aided establishment, on account of failing to qualify TET/ CTET exam prior to the cut-off date of 31-3-2019. Aggrieved by the same petitioner filed a writ petition before the present Court.
Analysis, Law and Decision
The Court observed that the issue before it is that what would be the fate of the teachers who were in service and had joined the employment without TET/ CTET qualification after it was made compulsory and did not acquire it later on as well, or acquired the qualification before the judgment by Supreme Court was passed in the case Anjuman Trust case (Supra).
The Court noted that the Supreme Court in the case Anjuman Trust case (Supra) ruled that those teachers, who have less than five years of service left, need not acquire the qualification, unless they desire promotion. Those having more than five years to retire, shall acquire the TET qualification within two years from the date of the judgment. If they fail to qualify the TET within the said time, they would be removed from employment or might compulsorily be retired. Thus, the judgment of Supreme Court did not reveal the fate of the teachers who joined the service without the TET qualification after it was made compulsory nor acquired it later or had acquired it before the said judgment was passed.
Following the dictum of the said case, the Court opined that the candidates who acquired the required qualifications after the statutory cut-off date but before the judgment was passed i.e. on 1-9-2025, could continue their service and the candidates who did not acquire those qualifications shall be given 2 years to acquire the same. Such candidates would also be entitled to promotion. It was specified that the qualification of CTET would be at par with TET.
Accordingly, the Court held that as the petitioners had already acquired the TET qualification prior to the judgment passed by the Supreme Court, they would be entitled to approval of the transfer from unaided to aided establishment. Thus, the order refusing approval to their transfer on account of failing to acquire TET prior to 31-3-2019 was quashed and set aside. The authorities concerned were directed to consider the cases and pass a fresh order at the earliest. Additionally, the Court specified that the candidates who participated in the 2019 TET exam results scam they would be scrutinized by the Court based on individual facts and circumstances of each case.
Also Read: An overview of Supreme Court decision mandating Aspiring and In-service Teachers to qualify the TET
[Sagar Dattatray Chorghe v. State of Maharashtra, 2025 SCC OnLine Bom 3170, decided on: 11-9-2025]
*Judgment authored by:Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge
Advocates who appeared in this case:
Advocate for the Petitioners- Suresh S. Pakale, Senior Advocate, Saurabh Pakale i/by Ms. Padmaja Malgaonkar, Advocate
Advocate for the Respondents- V.G. Badgujar, AGP, Rui Rodrigues a/w Ms. Naveen Kumari, Aparna Rajeshwari S. Advocate; Sandeep Waghmare, Ashok Misal, Advocate
