Grant to mutt, land to trust: K'taka HC converts PIL into suo moto petition
Bengaluru, Oct 21: The Karnataka High Court has converted a public interest litigation into a suo moto PIL challenging the grant of Rs 5 crore by the state government to 'Ganiga Math' and eight acres of land to the 'Ganiga Samudaya Trust'.
Advocate Vidyulatha has been appointed as amicus curiae by the division bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Ashok N Kinagi.
The petition was filed by one N Hanumegowda who was directed by the court to hand over all the documents related to it to the amicus curiae within two weeks.
The HC has already issued notices to the Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka; Deputy Commissioner, Bengaluru Urban, Revenue Department; and B J Puttaswamy, president of 'Vishwa Ganigara Samudaya Trust'.
Puttaswamy was the political secretary to then chief minister B S Yediyurappa when the Trust was sanctioned eight acres of land in Nagaruru village in Bengaluru North taluk in 2011. The same year, the state budget sanctioned Rs 5 crore for the 'Ganiga Gurupeeta'.
The petition alleged that Puttaswamy used his influence with the Chief Minister to get these two grants sanctioned.
Puttaswamy had filed a defamation case against Hanumegowda and the latter was convicted for it.
Since he had not disclosed this issue in his PIL, the HC had imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on him in 2020.
On Friday, his advocate said the fine amount would be paid through cheque.
The court recorded this submission before turning the PIL into a suo moto PIL and appointing the amicus curiae to help the court.
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Absence of teachers frustrates purpose of Right to Education Act: Allahabad HC
Prayagraj (PTI): The Allahabad High Court observed that the absence of teachers frustrates the very purpose of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 and refused to interfere with the suspension of primary school teachers who were found absent from their school during an inspection.
The court also directed the state government to frame a policy ensuring the presence of teachers in schools within three months.
Justice Prakash Padia, while disposing of the writ petitions filed by Indra Devi and Leena Singh Chauhan, observed that the teachers are the "pillars of knowledge" and revered as 'Guru' in the Indian culture. The state government has an obligation to ensure the imparting of unbarred education to children.
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Both the government school teachers challenged the orders passed by the District Basic Education Officer suspending them, specifically on the ground that they were not found in the institution during the inspection.
The court, in an order dated December 2, while refusing to interfere in the suspension order of both teachers, observed, "It is a well-known fact that in a large number of primary institutions throughout the State of U.P., teachers are not attending the institution on time."
"It is an obligation on the state to ensure imparting unbarred education to children belonging to the primary institutions. The matters are coming every day before this Court in which allegations were made against the teachers and headmasters of the institution to the effect that they are not attending the institution within time," the court added.
