MAMJI ABDULMEMAN MOHAMMAD YUSUF Vs. DIRECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner had applied for admission to a Homeopathic course and for that purpose he gave necessary application for enrolling him to the aforesaid Homeopathic course. The petitioner had initially applied for admission under the reserved category of O.B.C. The petitioner was placed at serial no.186 in the O.B.C. merit list prepared by the Department. At the time of procedure for admission, the petitioner was asked to produce creamy layer certificate for getting admission in the reserved seat meant for O.B.C.. For production of such certificate the petitioner was also given time, but unfortunately, he could not produce the said certificate in time. Thereafter, the petitioner was admitted to the aforesaid course in the high payment seat quota and he stood at general merit serial no.1162 and ultimately he was admitted to the said course at V.H. Dave Homeopathic Medical College, Anand. Accordingly, the petitioner started his education in view of the admission which he secured in the payment seat quota. Subsequently, the petitioner obtained the necessary certificate which is at Annexure "C", the certificate known as "O.B.C. certificate" which was granted to the petitioner on 6-12-1997. After obtaining the said certificate, application Annexure "B" was made on 10-12-1997 by the father of the petitioner and it was requested that since by then he had got the necessary certificate of O.B.C., the admission of the petitioner's son may be treated to have been enrolled under the O.B.C. quota as per the O.B.C. merit list at serial no.186 which was given to him at the initial stage when he applied for admission. Ultimately, since the decision with regard to admission was to be taken by the State Government, the petitioner's father was informed by the State Government by letter dated 27-1-1998 that as the required certificate had been obtained after a period of one year of enrolment to the course in the payment seat quota, it is not possible to accept the request made on behalf of the petitioner by his father that his admission should be considered as admission in the reserved category of O.B.C.

(2.) Being aggrieved by the said order of the State Government, the petitioner approached this Court in the year 1998 by way of this petition. It is prayed in the petition that decision of the State Government dated 27-1-1998 at Annexure "E" may be quashed and set aside and that the respondents may be directed to grant the petitioner admission on the basis of his placement in the merit list at serial no.186 in O.B.C.quota and to extend all the benefits including refund of fees etc. which was paid by him at the time of getting admission in the payment seat quota.

(3.) On behalf of the petitioner, Mr. Supehia has vehemently argued that in the facts and circumstances of the case, the respondents may be directed to refund the fees which the petitioner had paid at the time of admission in the payment seat quota. It is submitted that as the petitioner had subsequently produced the certificate of O.B.C. his admission should now be treated retrospectively as the admission in reserved category of O.B.C. and not in the general category in the payment seat quota. It is submitted by Mr. Supehia that since the petitioner really belongs to O.B.C. category, he was entitled to get admission in that category and whatever fees he had paid at the relevant time for admission in the payment seat quota should be refunded to him. The aforesaid arguments are resisted by the learned AGP Mr. M.K. Dagli and it is submitted by him that once the petitioner has accepted the admission in general category of payment seat quota, no relief can be given to the petitioner by way of treating his admission in the reserved category of O.B.C.