CHARU SHARMA Vs. MOTILAL NEHRU COLLEGE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A piquant situation has arisen in this case. The Petitioner had gained admittance to the MotiLal Nehru College (hereinafter referred to as College) which is affiliated to the Delhi University in the B.A.(Hons.) English Degree Course. She is presently in the 2nd year B.A. (Hons.) English. She had applied and gained admission to the College and the said Course as a Ward of an Employee, namely Shri Sanjay Sharma, of the College. Numerous irregularities in Admissions to the College had been detected towards the end of the previous Academic Year 2004-2005 in which Mr. Sanjay Sharma allegedly played a central and pivotal role. In the course of investigation it was discovered that the Petitioner was not the daughter of Mr.Sanjay Sharma and therefore, did not fall within the definition of ?Wards? of employees which entitled the Petitioner to preferential treatment so far as Admission to the College is concerned.

(2.) This Court would be loathe to come to the aid of any person who has knowingly committed an illegality or an irregularity. One of the features of this case, which cannot be ignored, is that in the application for admission no mis-representation had been made in that the Petitioner had stated that she is the niece of Mr. Sanjay Sharma. It has not been controverted that there is another case of a student who has been granted preferential admission on the strength of her being a 'cousin sister' of an employee. No action similar to that visited upon the Petitioner has been taken in respect of the other student.

(3.) It would thus be fair to infer and deduce that the College understood cousins/nieces to fall within the purview of the word 'Ward'. The fact remains that the citizens of Delhi cannot be expected to be aware of the restricted definition of `Wards' contained in the University Regulations, which precisely defines it to include only sons and daughters. The Concise Oxford Dictionary ascribes a much wider meaning to the word ward as ?a child or young person under the care and control of a guardian appointed by their parents or a Court.? The Cobuild English Dictionary for Advanced Learners defines ward to be