HC imposes costs of Rs 15,000 each on CEO, Dist Edn Officer

The Madras High Court today imposed Rs 15,000 each as costs on the Chief Education Officer and the District Education Officer-in-charge of Kanyakumari district on a contempt petition filed by a government-aided school correspondent for not implementing its order of 2007 to appoint a sweeper in the institution.
Justice T Raja said the court had on July 10, 2007 ordered the two officials to immediately approve appointment of J Suseelal as sweeper of St Francis Higher Secondary school.They went on appeal but it was dismissed on November 21, 2009. Now when the contempt petition had been filed for deliberately not implementing the court order, the officials were saying that they had filed a review petition.

"It is not known why the officials protract the matter when the writ appeal was dismissed," the Madurai bench judge said.
He said the contemnors, the CEO and DEO, had deliberately delayed implementation of the order. After a huge delay, the review application filed on April 27, 2010 had deliberately not been brought up for disposal.
For all these delay tactics, the court had to punish the contemnors the judge said and directed them to pay Rs 15,000 each to the correspondent, who is the Petitioner.
The case has been posted for reporting compliance after two weeks.