INDER PARKASH Vs. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition under Article 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, by a medical student, challenges the action of the University of Delhi and the authorities of the Maulana Azad Medical College, cancelling the admission of the petitioner as a medical student, on the ground that he had obtained admission on the basis of a false representation that he belonged to the scheduled Caste and raises, inter alia, an important question as to whether the right to higher or technical or professional education could be treated as an integral part of either the fundamental right or freedom of expression and speech or to carry on any trade or profession and be themselves enforecable as fundamental rights.

(2.) In the year 1971, the petitioner, who was admittedly eligble lor admission for a medical course, was admitted in the Maulana Azad Medical College, against a seat reserved for a scheduled cas'c candidate, on the basis of a representation in his application that he belonged lo JulahaJ caste. The petitioner had enclosed with the application a certificate to that effect issued by the office of the Deputy Commissioner. Delhi (Annexure P-2). According to the certificate the petitioner belonged to Julaha caste, which was recognised as a scheduled caste.

(3.) The petitioner had, however, been admitted on a provisional basis subject to verification, ft appears that while the petitioner was in the first year of the M.B.B.S. course verification revealed that the petitioner did not belong to any scheduled caste. The provisional admission of the petitioner was accordingly cancelled by an order of the Principal of the college made on November 18, 1971. Subsequently in February'. 1972, on a representation from the petitioner reiterating his claim of being a member of the scheduled caste, the cancellation was rescinded and the petitioner was provisionally readmitted subJect to the decision of the Deputy Commissioner on the petitioner's representation. If appears that between the year 1972 and 1975 the process of verification went on at a rather leizurely pace in course of which a reference was made to the Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Tribes. The Commissioner answered in the negative the reference of the DepulyCommissioner, Delhi, if a member of the Patoli community of Multan, to which the petitioner claimed to belong, was part of the "weaving caste". The Commissioner expressed the view that the petitioner did not belong to any scheduled caste. On the basis of this conclusion oF the Commissioner, the Deputy Commissioner, Delhi, informed the college authorities that the petitioner was not a member of the Julaha community and was, therefore, not a member of any scheduled caste. It is on the basis of this finding and on the recommendation of the college authorities that the University of Delhi advised the college authorities to cancel the admission of the petitioner. Pursuent to this the admission of the petitioner was eventually cancelled by the college atuhorities by an order of June 9, 1975, Annexure 'A'. It further appears that until the order made by the college authorities, cancelling the admission of the petitioner, the petitioner continued to make progress in the studies and had already spent more than 4 years and was in the 5th and the final year of studies when he filed the present petition in 1975, challenging the cancellation of the admission and the proceedings leading thereto. On the Rule Nisi being issued the petitioner was allowed to appear in the final examination and has since appeared MI the supplementary examination, subject to the decision of the petition, pending which his result has remained withheld.