HC bars retrospective curbs on MPO teachers’ rights

The High Court has ruled that teachers and employees of private MPO-listed educational institutions cannot be deprived of legal rights acquired under the rules applicable when they were appointed by imposing new conditions retrospectively.

The court made the observation while declaring a rule issued in response to a writ petition filed by four teachers seeking MPO enlistment to be absolute in the case of Md Abu Hanif and others vs the State and others.

The High Court also cancelled the online decision rejecting the four teachers’ MPO applications on the grounds that they did not have National Teachers’ Registration and Certification Authority (NTRCA) certificates.

The bench of Justice Shashanka Shekhar Sarkar and Justice Urmi Rahman delivered the judgment on June 30, with the full text published on Monday.

Justice Urmi Rahman, the junior judge of the bench, authored the main part of the judgment.

The four teachers were appointed as lecturers in Economics, Psychology, English and Social Welfare at Rozi Mozammel Women’s College in Gurudaspur upazila of Natore based on a recruitment notice published on September 15, 2015.

According to the case documents, their appointments followed the then-prevailing regulations of the National University. They were appointed on December 29, 2015 and joined their posts the following day.

The college was brought under the MPO scheme on April 19, 2020.

Following a decision of the Education Ministry, third teachers appointed by institutions that had published recruitment notices before the NTRCA circular of December 30, 2015 and made appointments by December 31, 2016 were given an opportunity to receive MPO benefits.