UNION OF INDIA Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Special Civil Application No. 5523 of 2003 is filed by the petitioners challenging the decision of the respondent No.1. i.e. Union of India, as contained in the Office Memorandum dtd. 11.02.2003 changing the system of admission to the respondent No.3 i.e. Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology, with effect from 2003. The petitioners have also prayed for interim relief against the respondents restraining them from implementing the decision contained in the Office Memorandum dtd. 11.02.2003 and thereby continuing the prevailing system of admission as contained in the Information Booklet produced at Annexure "B" to the petition, in so far as filling up of 225 seats in the respondent No.3 and for 129 seats allotted to Gujarat State for admission to Engineering Colleges of other States, is concerned.

(2.) The brief facts giving rise to the present petition as well as this Civil Application are that the respondent No.3 institute was established as a Regional Engineering College (REC) pursuant to the Policy of the Government of India, in the name of Sardar Vallabhbhai Regional College of Engineering and Technology, Surat. The total intake capacity of the said institute is 450 students and further 129 seats of Regional Engineering Colleges of other States are allotted to Gujarat State. Out of the intake capacity of the College for basic degree course interalia of engineering, 50% for the students of the State, 30% for students of other States in the Region and 20% for students of all parts of the country other than the Region were to be allotted.

(3.) In the respondent No.3 institute, right from its inception upto academic year 2002 - 03, the admissions were given on the basis of the merit list prepared by the Central Degree Admission Committee. The total seats in the respondent No.3 allotted to students of the State (225) were apportioned between the students who had passed standard 12th examination of the Gujarat Secondary Education Board and the students of recognised Central Schools in Gujarat who had passed the standard 12th examination of the Central Board of Secondary Education and / or Council of Indian Schools Certificate Examination, in the same ratio as borne by the total number of such students to the total number of students clearing the standard 12th examination. On and average, such ratio was roughly 95:5 as between the students of the Gujarat Secondary Education Board and the Central Boards. The prevailing admission policy also envisaged special weightage marks being assigned for admission to Engineering courses to students who have passed standard 10th examination with two technical subjects. It is further stated that the respondent No.3 institute was converted from an REC into an NIT (National Institute of Technology) and was granted status of Deemed University under the University Grants Commission Act (UGC Act). As a condition thereof, the Government of India stipulated interalia that the system of admission would not change as a result of the conversion.