DIRECTOR, RAJAGIRI SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY Vs. A.P.J ABDUL KALAM TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These three Appeals arise from the common judgment of the learned Single Judge in W.P.(C).Nos.36631 of 2018, 36773 of 2018 and 37147 of 2018. The brief facts necessary for a disposal of these Writ Petitions are as follows: The writ petitioner Colleges, which were all established in the self-financing sector in 2001/2002 for imparting technical education, and were affiliated to the M.G.University and the Calicut University respectively in the State of Kerala, were automatically affiliated to the A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University (hereinafter referred to as 'the Technological University'), which came into being through the A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University Act, 2015 (hereinafter referred to as 'the 2015 Act'). Chapter VIII of the said Act deals with permission, affiliation and recognition of colleges. Section 60(1) under the said Chapter, with which we are concerned in these appeals, deals with affiliation and recognition and reads as follows:-

(2.) An affiliated College or Institution is defined under Section 2(c) of the Act as follows:-

(3.) It can be seen from a perusal of Section 60(1) extracted above, read with the definition of affiliated colleges under the Act, that the Technological University could affiliate any engineering college or institution imparting education in technology, and whether owned by Government of Kerala or Government controlled society, private aided and private unaided self- financing educational agencies, which before the commencement of the 2015 Act (with effect from 05.05.2014) remained affiliated to a different University except Deemed University in the State of Kerala, provided the said colleges or institutions met the criteria prescribed under the 2015 Act, Ordinances and Statutes for affiliation. The Technological University was empowered to affiliate those colleges meeting the prescribed criteria for affiliation as regular colleges, autonomous colleges, colleges with academic autonomy or institutions. If a college or institution that was earlier affiliated to another University other than a Deemed University in the State of Kerala satisfied the specified criteria for affiliation to the Technological University under the 2015 Act, on the date of commencement of operation of the 2015 Act, then, the earlier affiliation of such institutions to other Universities in the State, except Deemed Universities, was to stand automatically transferred to the Technological University on and from the date of commencement of the Act. The said transfer of affiliation was, however, subject to the condition that those students who had already been affiliated to the earlier University, consequent to their being admitted to the college/institution prior to the date of commencement of the 2015 Act, would continue to be affiliated to the erstwhile Universities for the purposes of award of degree, diploma etc.