Ph.D Mandatory For Associate Professor Post(Re-designated as Assistant Professor) In Technical Institutions As Per AICTE Regulations After March 5, 2010: Supreme Court

Upholding a Kerala High Court judgment, the Supreme Court has held that Ph.D  is mandatory for the post of Associate Professor(Re-designated as Assistant Professor) after 5.3.2010 as per the AICTE Regulations.

A bench comprising of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy dismissed the special leave petitions filed against a division bench judgment of the Kerala High Court by which the High Court had disposed of a batch of twelve petitions filed by Assistant Professors apprehending reversion for lack of PhD degree.

The Supreme Court order, in giving a quietus to a decade old litigation, holds that:

"We are in agreement with the view that the notification dated 18.02.2003 granting seven years to acquire PhD. Degree for the right to hold the post of Associate Professors (re-designated as Assistant Professors) would come to an end in 2010 and thus persons who acquire the PhD. Degree on a subsequent date will only be eligible for consideration from the date when they acquire PhD. Degree"

The bench headed by Justice Kaul was hearing the challenge to the impugned judgment dated 03-12-2020 whereby the Division Bench of the High Court came to a finding that Rule 6A(ii) of the Special Rules for Kerala Technical Education Service, 1967 (Special Rules) is not applicable after 5/3/2010.

The said Rule, added in 2003, had granted seven years time to acquire the PhD qualification.

Rule 6A(ii) of the Special Rules reads as follows:

"Candidates applying for the post of Assistant Professor are exempted from possessing Ph.D. Degree but they have to acquire Ph.D. Degree within seven years of the appointment to the post of Assistant Professor as stipulated by the All India Council for Technical Education".

In High Court, a division bench comprising Justices AM Shaffique and P Gopinath had held as follows :

"Rules 6A(i) and 6A(ii) have no application beyond 5-3-2010, the date on which "Pay Scales, Service Conditions and Qualifications for The Teachers And Other Academic Staff InTechnical Institutions Degree Regulations, 2010" were issued by the AICTE. In other words, after 5-03-2010, the qualification of Ph.D is mandatory for the posts of Principals,Professors and Associate Professors (re-designated post of Assistant Professor)"

The High Court also held that the Kerala Technical Education Service Rules framed by the State under Article 309 of the Constitution of India read with the provisions of the Kerala Public Services Act, 1968 will be subject to Regulations framed by the AICTE regarding the qualifications, method of appointment etc. and the Rules framed by the State would, to the extent it is repugnant to the Central Act/Regulations, be void and inoperative. The AICTE Regulations have to be followed even in the absence of any enabling Rule or Regulation in the State Rules

Senior Advocate V Giri argued for the petitioner and Senior Advocate V Chitambaresh and Karthik SD for the respondent 

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