COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT DAYANAND ARYA KANYA DEGREE COLLEGE, MORADABAD AND ORS.versusDIRECTOR OF HIGHER EDUCATION ALLAHABAD AND ORS.

   COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT DAY ANAND ARY A KANYA                                A
        DEGREE COLLEGE, MORADABAD AND ORS.
                                     v.
  DIRECTOR OF HIGHER EDUCATION ALLAHABAD AND ORS.

                          JANUARY 16, 1998
                                                                                B
                (G.N. RAY AND G.B. PATTANAIK, JJ.]


     Service Law :

     Uttar Pradesh University Act, 1913,                                        c
      Section 35(3)-Principal of Degree College run by Managing
Committee-Resignation-Accepted by Managing Committee-Plea that
acceptance of resignation by Managing Committee has not become operative
as Vice Chancellor did not accord approval-Held, no such approval is D
contemplated under sub-section (3) of s.35-The ~uh-section applies when
the services of a teacher are terminated by the Managing Committee-
However, it will be open to the Managing Committee concerned to consider
the representation of the respondent, if made, on merits.

      J.K. Cotton Spinning and Weaving Mills Co. Ltd. v. State of UP. and       E
Ors., [1990) 4 SCC 27, referred to.

     CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 415of1998.

      From the Judgment and Order dated 16.1. 95 of the Allahabad High Court
in Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 31943/94.
                                                                                F
     S.B. Sanyal, S.K. Sethi and R.P. Saxena for the Appellants.

     Vijay Bahaguna, Sashi Nandan, Satish Vig and Mr. S. Kulshreshtha for
the Respondents.

     The following Order of the Court was delivered :                           G
     Leave granted.

     Heard learned counsel for the parties.

     The short question that arises for decision of this Court in this appeal   H
                                    225
    226                    SUPREME COURT REPORTS                     [1998] l S.C.R.

A   is whether the respondent Dr. Manju Saraswat continues as Principal of the
    Dayanand Arya Kanya Degree College, Moradabad, despite the fact that she
    had voluntarily tendered resignation from the said post long back. By the
    impugned judgment, the High Court has held that the acceptance of the
    resignation by the Managing Committee of the said college was not operative
B   because the authorised Controller had not accepted such resignation and the
    Vice Chancellor the concerned University had also not accorded approval of
    the decision of the Managing Committee in accepting the resignation tendered        ·'I
    by the said Manju Saraswat.

         There is no dispute to the fact that Smt. Manju Saraswat tendered
C resignation voluntarily and till today she had not withdrawn such resignation.
  There is also no dispute to the fact that at the relevant time when the
  Managing Committee had accepted the said resignation, the said Managing
  Committee was in office both de facto and de jure by virtue of the interim
  order passed by the High Court in the writ proceeding in favour of the
  Managing Committee. In the aforesaid circumstances, the High Court, in our
D view, has gone wrong in proceedings on the footing that the authorised
  controller had not accepted the resignation tendered by Smt. Manju Saraswat           '"
  because the authorised controller was not in office at the relevant time when
  the voluntary resignation was accepted by the Managing Committee which
  was lawfully discharging the duties and functions of the Managing Committee.
  So far as the question of according approval by the Vice-Chancellor of the
E University is concerned, it may be pointed out that such approval is not
  contemplated under sub-section 3 of Section 35 of the Uttar Pradesh University
  Act, 1973 in the case of voluntary resignation by a teacher. The said sub-
  section applies when a decision to terminate the service of t~acher whether
  by way of punishment or otherwise is taken by the management. If a teacher
F voluntarily tenders resignation and by that process withdraws from the service
  on own accord, the question of termination of service does not arise. In this
  connection, reference may be made to the decision of this Court in J.K.
  Cotton Spinning and Weaving Mills Co. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & Ors., [1990]
  4 sec 27. It has been held in the said decision that if an employee voluntarily
  tenders resignation, it becomes an act of the employee who chooses to
G voluntarily give up job. Therefore, such situation will be covered by the
   expression voluntary retirement within the meaning of clause I of Section 2
   (a) of U.P. Industrial Disputes Act, 194 7. It has also been indicated in the said
   decision that if the resignation is not voluntarily but it is tendered on account
   of coersion, such resignation cannot be held to be voluntary act of the
H employee expressly deciding to withdraw from service.
       COMM. OF MAN. DA YAN AND A.K.DEGREE COLL. v. DIRE. OF HIGHER EDU.   227
       We have already indicated that such is not the case in this appeal.         A
Therefore, there was no occasion for the Vice-Chancellor of the University to
accord approval on a decision of the management to terminate the service of
the concerned teacher. Since the Managing Committee which was lawfully in
office at the relevant point of time and had accepted the voluntary resignation,
the relationship of master and servant between the college authorities and Dr.     B
Manju Saraswat had come to an end. Hence, there is no question of her
continuance in the service in the said college. Mr. Vijay Bahugana, the learned
senior counsel appearing for the respondent Dr. Manju Saraswat, has submitted
that although such voluntary resignation was tendered by Dr. Manju Saraswat
and the same had not been withdrawn by her, on account of some
misconception, the fact remains that she had thereafter continued in service       C
for long for which she had also been paid. Mr. Bahugana has submitted that
the new Management has taken charge of the said college and it will be only
appropriate if such Committee considers the case of Smt. Manju Saraswat
sympathetically. It is not necessary for this Court to make any observation
on such submission of Mr. Bahugana. It will be open to the concerned
Managing Committee to consider the representation, if made by Dr. Manju            D
Saraswat, on its merit. This appeal, therefore, succeeds and the impugned
order is set aside without, however, any order as to costs.

R.P.                                                          Appeal allowed.