In a significant development, the Tamil Nadu government has approached the Supreme Court with a review petition, challenging its recent ruling that made the Teachers’ Eligibility Test (TET) mandatory even for teachers who were appointed before the Right to Education Act (RTE) came into force in 2010. The State contends that such an interpretation will not only affect livelihoods but also jeopardize the functioning of the entire school system.
Background
The dispute stems from the Court’s September 1 judgment, which held that all teachers with more than five years of service left-irrespective of when they were appointed-must clear TET within two years. This ruling, according to Tamil Nadu, runs contrary to the original intent of the RTE Act.
The Act, notified in 2009, required that teachers should be TET-qualified within five years. However, states like Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and West Bengal had obtained relaxation from the Central Government at that time due to shortage of trained teachers and limited teacher training facilities. “It was never meant to punish those who had entered service under valid rules before 2010,” the review petition insists.
Court’s Observations Under Challenge
The State’s plea rests on Section 23 of the RTE Act. Section 23(1), it argues, deals only with new recruitments after the Act, while Section 23(2) addresses the temporary relaxation granted by the Centre for states struggling with teacher shortages. The Tamil Nadu government maintains that the proviso requiring TET qualification within five years applies only to those appointed during such relaxation period-not to pre-2010 teachers.
“The bench observed, ‘All teachers who continue in service and have five years left must qualify through TET,’” the State notes in its plea, but it insists that such an interpretation makes the law operate retrospectively and unfairly disqualifies thousands of teachers who entered service lawfully under earlier rules.
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Decision
The petition warns of dire consequences if the Court’s earlier direction is enforced. With nearly 3.9 lakh teachers in Tamil Nadu not TET-qualified, the government says the system faces “imminent collapse.” Millions of children could be left without instructors, striking at the heart of the constitutional right to education under Article 21A.
Instead of retrospective disqualification, the State has urged the Court to consider alternatives like in-service training, refresher courses, or bridging programs to enhance teaching quality. “Compelling pre-2010 teachers to clear TET within two years is manifestly disproportionate,” the petition reads, stressing that the directive should only apply prospectively to post-2010 recruits.
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The review petition, filed through Advocate-on-Record Sabarish Subramanian and settled by Senior Advocate P. Wilson, now awaits consideration by the Supreme Court. The matter is expected to draw close attention, given its potential impact on lakhs of teachers and the education of countless students across India.
Case: Tamil Nadu Govt’s Review Plea Against Supreme Court’s TET Mandate for Pre-2010 Teachers
