MIDHUN Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is a Diploma holder in engineering, who passed the Diploma course conducted by the Board of Technical Examinations, Bangalore. He applied for admission to the B.Tech course in Kerala through the lateral entry system whereby the candidates who have passed diploma can directly be admitted to the 2nd year of the B.Tech course. According to the petitioner, he passed the common entrance examination conducted as per Ext. P2 prospectus. He has also 60 per cent marks for 5th and 6th semester examinations together. Therefore, according to him, he is eligible for admission as per Clause 4 of Ext. P2. However, he has not been given admission. Therefore, he has approached this Court seeking a direction to the 5th respondent to give admission to the petitioner in the lateral entry stream as per Ext. P3 rank certificate.

(2.) The learned Government Pleader would submit that Clause 4 of Ext. P2 has been introduced in terms of Clause 11(c) of the Rules and Regulations of Diploma Course under the State Board of Technical Education, Kerala State. As per this, the total marks for 2nd and 3rd year shall be considered to classify successful candidates, i.e. both marks of 2nd and 3rd year would be added and the percentage of marks out of 2800 worked out on the basis of which classification of first class with distinction (75% and above marks) first class (between 60% and 75%) and second class (below 60%) would be made. According to the Government Pleader, going by the same 60 per cent of the total of 2nd and 3rd year marks would be the eligibility criteria for the purpose of Clause 4.

(3.) On the other hand, the counsel for the petitioner would submit that the curriculum of the Bangalore course is totally different from that of the Kerala course and they have semester system. As far as they are concerned, 60 per cent marks would-be calculated taking into account the marks for 5th and 6th semester examinations, which the petitioner has got. Therefore, the petitioner has passed his diploma with 60 per cent marks as stated in Clause 4.1 in Ext. P2 and therefore he is eligible to be given admission as per the rank list published in the entrance examination.