The Telangana High Court has directed the state government to reinstate 35 junior lecturers after finding that their appointments could not be cancelled over allegations of fake postgraduate certificates without an inquiry and an opportunity to defend themselves.
Justice K Sarath passed the interim orders on Wednesday while hearing a batch of petitions challenging proceedings issued on October 1 by the director of Intermediate Education. The court suspended those proceedings and ordered the lecturers’ reinstatement in service forthwith.
The order does not prevent the authorities from initiating departmental proceedings in accordance with law. The court’s direction therefore pauses the cancellations while leaving the education department free to pursue a properly constituted inquiry into the allegations.
According to the petitioners, their services were regularised in May 2023 along with those of more than 3,000 contractual junior lecturers. They said they had submitted postgraduate certificates and genuineness letters issued by the respective universities before their regularisation.
The lecturers told the court that the department initially accepted those documents but later issued show-cause notices alleging that their certificates were not genuine. They said they submitted explanations denying the allegations and pointed out that the universities had previously certified their qualifications as genuine.
The petitioners further argued that the authorities cancelled their appointments without conducting an inquiry under the applicable service rules. They also contended that the director of Intermediate Education, described in their pleadings as a higher authority, could not bypass the regional joint director of Intermediate Education, identified as the disciplinary authority, because doing so deprived them of an opportunity to appeal.
The state government opposed the petitions. Its counsel told the court that the universities had informed the department that records relating to the lecturers’ certificates could not be found. The government also argued that the appointments were subject to verification of the original certificates, that the lecturers’ probation had not been declared and that a regular departmental inquiry was not necessary before cancelling their appointments.
The court noted that the lecturers had produced university letters certifying the genuineness of their certificates, while subsequent communications from the same universities questioned their authenticity. According to the order as reported, the judge held that this discrepancy required an inquiry and an opportunity for the lecturers to explain their position.
Relying on Supreme Court judgments, the High Court held that termination based on allegations of misconduct, when it carries a stigma, cannot be treated as a simple discharge from service without following due procedure. The court also noted that the lecturers had served the department for more than 10 years.
The immediate consequence is that the 35 junior lecturers are to be restored to service while the legal challenge proceeds. The education authorities may initiate departmental proceedings in accordance with the applicable rules, subject to the safeguards identified by the court.
