1. ' This judgment shall dispose of Writ Petitions Nos.14423 and 14520 of 1993 as both of them involve a similar question of law and facts.
2. The petitioners in both these Constitutional petitions have sought direction to the respondent Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education for grant of concessional marks under Rule 12 of the Board of Intermediate Examination Rules in the paper of Chemistry. The petitioners appeared in the Intermediate 2nd Annual Examination of 1992 conducted by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Lahore, but failed to qualify their Chemistry Theory paper.
2. ' It is argued by the learned counsel in these cases that the petitioners are entitled to the concessional marks as envisaged by Rule 12 of the Board of Intermediate Examination Rules and the failure of the respondent Board to grant them the same has completely prejudiced their career.
3. Reliance in this respect has been placed by the learned counsel on an earlier decision of this Court rendered in Writ Petition No,1429 of 1993 and Writ Petition No,5406 of 1993 decided respectively on 28-4-1993 and 13-10-1993 wherein a direction was issued to the respondent Board to grant the concessional marks as envisaged under Rule 12 of the Board of Intermediate Examination Rules.
4. ' Ch. Ijaz Ahmad, learned counsel appearing for the respondents has reiterated his earlier stance taken before this Court stating that Rule 12 of the Board of Intermediate Examination Rules has been done away w.e.f. 26-9-1992. He has also taken exception to the conduct of the petitioners as they were not vigilant and slept oven their rights as such they are not entitled to the concession earlier awarded through Writ Petition No,1429 of 1923 and many others vide this Court's order, dated 28-4-1993. It has also been argued by the learned counsel for the respondent that since the petitioners in some of these petitions have taken annual examination of 1993 as such they have foregone their right under Rule 12 to claim concessional marks in their examination of 1992 Annual.
5. ' I have given my anxious consideration to the entire facts of these cases. The basic question which needs determination in these cases is whether the petitioners are entitled to the concession of Rule
12. It is not denied as held in the earlier round of litigation that before Spring 1991, the Intermediate Examinations for Class XI and Class XII were held as one composite examination on the completion of Class XII. The Government of Punjab in its capacity as a controlling authority issued Notification bearing No,SO(Board)1- 270/89 dated 15-5-1990 wherein it was decided that as a matter of policy, the examination for Class XI and Class XII shall be conducted separately and not as one composite examination. This notification was given effect to by all the Boards of the Punjab, immediately.
6. Subsequent thereto, the Committee of Chairman of the Board of Punjab in a meeting held on 5/6- 5-1991 vide its item No,4 decided as under:-- {{URDU TEXT}} ' The Committee of Chairman of the Boards again held its meeting on 24-9-1992 and reiterated its previous decision taken on 5/6-5-1991 respecting the deletion of Rule 12 which is as under:-- {{URDU TEXT}} ' This decision of the Committee of Chairman respecting the deletion of concessional marks under Rule 12 was adopted by all the other Boards of the Punjab but the respondent Board adopted the same on 26-9-1992.
7. ' The Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Lahore has issued a Hand Book of Curricula and Syllabi for the Intermediate Examination held in 1992 wherein Rules for the Intermediate Examination have been produced. Rule 12 on which the reliance is placed is as under:-- "A candidate who fails to qualify for the grant of the Intermediate Certificate for want of not more than 1% of the total number of marks allotted to the relevant group, shall be given the benefit of requisite number of marks in the subjects/papers in which he has failed so as to enable him just to qualify for the grant of the certificate; subject to Rule 9(ii); provided that these marks shall not be physically added to the marks obtained by the candidate in the said subjects/papers, or the aggregate, but the marks actually obtained by him in these subjects/papers will be included in the aggregate, and a note to this effect will be given in the certificate."
8. ' It is not denied that the last date for the submission of Forms for the Intermediate Examination for Annual 1992 was 20-9-1992, before the adoption of resolution doing away with Rule 12 of the Board Rules. This shows that a valuable right accrued to the petitioners to take their examinations in accordance with the rules then prevalent. The right so accrued to the petitioners at the submission of their forms to take Intermediate Examination in accordance with the then prevalent rules cannot be taken away in this manner. Furthermore, Regulation 2(2) contained in Chapter III of the Calendar of the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Lahore provides as under:-- "Regulations or rules shall take effect from the date of their approval unless any other date is specified therein as the date from which they are to come into force:-- Provided that a regulation or a rule shall take retrospective effect only if it is not to the detriment of the interest of an employee, or a student, or a candidate for an examination of the Board, or a recognized institution."
9. ' In this case the recommendations formulated by the Committee of Chairmen of Boards doing away with the concessional marks was adopted and approved by all other Boards in Punjab within time but the respondent Board adopted it at a much later dated i,e, 26-9-1992. This adoption was made much after the forms were submitted for the Second Annual Examination, 1992 of the Intermediate Examination Class XII. In these circumstances this cannot have retrospective effect particularly so when the candidates in First Annual Examination of 1992 have already been granted concessional marks under Rule 12.
10. ' The argument that since some of the petitioners have taken 1993 Annual Examination as such they cannot fall back and claim concessional marks under Rule 12 in their earlier examination is devoid of any force. It is nowhere provided that a right accrued to the petitioners on the basis of Rule 12 would be lost if he/she takes subsequent examination. Learned counsel appearing for the respondents has failed to point out any rule or regulation on the basis of which the petitioners can simply be denied of their right to claim concessional marks under Rule 12 on the basis that they have taken 1993 Annual Examination. The Board of Intermediate Secondary c Education had already granted concessional marks to the other students similarly placed as such no discrimination can be made in case of the petitioners merely because of their belated approach.
11. Accordingly both the writ petitions are accepted. Respondent Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education is directed to grant concessional marks as envisaged under Rule 12 of the Intermediate Examination Rules to the petitioners after full verification. There shall be no order as to costs.