G.R. No. L-5656. March 24, 1954

On September 21, 1951, the Director of Public Schools issued Circular No. 20, series of 1951, which reads as follows:

“PUBLIC SCHOOL PUPILS AND STUDENTS MAY BE REQUIRED TO SALUTE THE FLAG”

To Division Superintendents:

“1. Quoted in the inclosure to this Circular for the
information and guidance of school officials and teachers, is Opinion
No. 370, series of 1951, of the Honorable, the Secretary of Justice,
‘regarding the power of the Director of Public Schools to require all
pupils and students in public schools to salute the flag, on pain of
being barred from admission to, or expelled from, such schools.’

“This Circular revokes Circular No. 33, series of 1948.

	“(Sgd.) BENITO PANGILINAN
	“Director of Public Schools”

The petitioners filed before the Court of First Instance of Tarlac a
petition for declaratory relief and mandatory injunction, praying that
the above circular be declared null and void, and that preliminary
injunction be issued prohibiting the respondents Mariano Alipio and
other teachers of the Malacampa Elementary School, and the Director of
Public Schools, from carrying out the provisions of said circular, and
that, after trial, the preliminary injunction be made permanent.

The Provincial Fiscal of Tarlac filed a motion to dismiss the
petition on the ground that under section 2, Rule 66, it was not a case
in which a declaratory judgment could be rendered. The court dismissed
the case. Hence, the petitioners have appealed to this Court.

It is not necessary to decide whether the petition for declaratory
judgment may be granted in this case, because in the petition presented
in the court below, in addition to the declaratory judgment, the
petitioners prayed for the issuance of a permanent injunction, which is
equivalent to an action for prohibition against public officers, and as
such we consider it, without passing at this stage of the proceedings
on the merits of said action.

In the present case, we cannot consider the question as to the
constitutionality of the circular as this will be decided after the
regular hearing.

In view of the foregoing, the order of the court dismissing the
petition is reversed, and the case returned to the Court of First
Instance of Tarlac for further proceedings as in an action for
prohibition, without costs. So ordered.

Paras, C. J., Pablo, Bengzon, Padilla, Montemayor, Reyes, Bautista Angelo, Labrador, Concepcion, and Diokno, JJ., concur.