'Wholly Misconceived' : Supreme Court Dismisses Writ Petition Challenging Its Judgment Upholding West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act

The Supreme Court recently dismissed a writ petition challenging its judgment upholding the constitutionality of West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act 2008.

The writ petition is wholly misconceived, the bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia observed.

The Managing committee of Majna High Madrasah had filed the writ petition challenging the judgment in S.K.Mohd. Rafique Vs. Contai Rahamania High Madrasah (2020) 6 SCC 689.

In S.K.Mohd. Rafique, the Court had set aside the Calcutta High Court judgment that had found Sections 8, 10, 11 and 12 of the West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act, 2008  to be ultra vires Article 30 of the Constitution, which deals with the right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions.

The judgment by Justice UU Lalit elaborately discussed the Supreme Court decisions up to TMA Pai Foundation case.

Holding that the provisions of the Act cannot be said to be transgressing the rights of the minority institutions, the Court had observed thus: "If the right is taken to be absolute and unqualified, then certainly such choice must be recognised and accepted. But, if the right has not been accepted to be absolute and unqualified and the national interest must always permeate and apply, the excellence and merit must be the governing criteria. Any departure from the concept of merit and excellence would not make a minority educational institution an effective vehicle to achieve what has been contemplated in various decisions of this Court. Further, if merit is not the sole and governing criteria, the minority institutions may lag behind the non-minority institutions rather than keep in step with them...If the minority institution has a better candidate available than the one nominated under a regulatory regime, the institution would certainly be within its rights to reject the nomination made by the authorities but if the person nominated for imparting education is otherwise better qualified and suitable, any rejection of such nomination by the minority institution would never help such institution in achieving excellence and as such, any such rejection would not be within the true scope of the Right protected under Article 30(1) of the Constitution."

The court had also declare that all nominations made by the Commission in pursuance of the provisions of the Commission Act to be valid and operative.

Case : Managing committee  Majna High Madrasah vs State of West Bengal | WP(C) 257/2022

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