Forced teacher resignations have no legal validity: High Court
A resignation letter obtained from a teacher through force has no legal validity, the High Court has said, directing the immediate reinstatement of a headteacher who was allegedly forced to sign a resignation letter.
The court also warned that strict disciplinary action should be taken against those who fail to implement its directives or instructions issued by the education board.
The High Court bench comprising Justice Md Iqbal Kabir and Justice SM Saiful Islam made the observations while disposing of a rule in the case titled Md Alkas Uddin Ahmed vs the State on 20 August.
The full text of the judgement was published on September 9. Justice Md Iqbal Kabir, the senior judge of the bench, wrote the main judgement.
In its observations, the court said the resignation letter submitted by the writ petitioner was not given voluntarily or of his own free will. Rather, his signature had been obtained forcibly.
“Law or any rule does not support a resignation obtained through force or pressure,” the court said.
The court directed the authorities concerned to immediately reinstate Md Alkas Uddin Ahmed, headteacher of Golam Nabi Model Pilot High School in Kaliakair, Gazipur, to his post.
It also said the education board, as the higher authority, has the jurisdiction to review, approve or cancel any disciplinary or punitive action taken by a school's managing committee.
Deliberately failing to comply with directives issued by the board amounts to misconduct, arbitrariness and abuse of power, the court observed.
The High Court recommended strict disciplinary action against those concerned if the court's judgement or the education board's directives are not implemented.
The measures may include dissolving the managing committee of the educational institution, removing its chairman and permanently stopping the MPO benefits of the acting headteacher, who is also the member-secretary of the committee.
According to the case details, Alkas Uddin Ahmed was serving as headteacher of Golam Nabi Model Pilot High School in Kaliakair upazila of Gazipur.
On 14 August 2024, a group of miscreants forcibly obtained his signature on a resignation letter against his will. The following day, he filed a general diary with Kaliakair Police Station.
He later submitted written applications seeking redress to the district secondary education officer, upazila nirbahi officer, director general of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, and chairman of the Dhaka Education Board.
An investigation committee was subsequently formed, and based on its report, the Dhaka Education Board directed that Alkas Uddin Ahmed be reinstated to his post.
However, as the board's order was not properly implemented, he filed a writ petition with the High Court in 2024 seeking appropriate redress.
Following the initial hearing, the High Court issued a rule and stayed the effectiveness of the forcibly obtained resignation letter for three months.
After legal proceedings, the court disposed of the rule on 20 August and delivered the full judgement.