LAKSHMAN GOUDA Vs. KARNATAKA UNIVERSITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this writ petition, the petitioner who is a student at Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, has challenged the validity of Ordinance 6 of the 1st respondent, Karnataka University. That ordinance provides that a candidate must pass first year engineering examination in not more than five attempts, failing which he shall not be permitted to continue the engineering course in the University. Admittedly, petitioner has failed four times and has made his fifth attempt, the result of which is not yet known. Perhaps in anticipation of the impending disaster, he has presented this writ petition sometime in the middle of last year challenging the validity of the ordinance.

(2.) The learned counsel has argued that in the State of Karnataka there is only one Act, which provides for the establishment of universities and therefore Karnataka University cannot have an ordinance of that type while other universities do not have it.

(3.) I do not think there is any force in this contention. Each university incorporated under the Act or deemed to have been incorporated is a separate distinct entity enjoying autonomous power to further the purpose for which they are incorporated. If educational standards are maintained in different ways, student of one university cannot complain that there has been discrimination because he should have gone and joined that university which had the most favourable terms for appearing for examination in any subject. The fact that they belong to different universities itself constitutes a classification and that classification obviously is a valid basis rational too and therefore such a student as the petitioner cannot press into service the equality extended under Art. 14.