JEPPIAAR EDUCATIONAL TRUST Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner-Trust was established in the year 1987 with a view to establish, maintain, run, improve and develop educational institutions. The Trust runs three educational institutions, out of which two are engineering colleges and the rest is a school. Under the name and style of St. Xavier Dental College, the petitioner submitted a scheme to the Government of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in the year 1998 for permission to establish a dental college. As the petitioner did not enclose the Essentiality Certificate from the State Government as per condition No. 3 of the Dental Council of India Regulations issued under Section 10-A of the Dentists Act, the application was returned. Thereafter, the petitioner applied to the State Government for issue of No Objection Certificate. The said application came to be initially rejected by the State Government on 25. 10. 99. The said order of rejection was set aside by this Court with a further direction to the State to reconsider the grant of No Objection Certificate.

(2.) IN the meantime, the petitioner college was granted a deemed university status by the Ministry of Human Resources Development Department, Government of India in the notification dated 16. 7. 2001. Hence, the petitioner by enclosing a copy of the said notification and the judgment of this Court dated 29. 8. 2001 submitted a fresh application for issue of an Essentiality Certificate to start the dental college from the academic year 2002-2003 in its application dated 29. 2. 2002. The inspection was conducted on 2. 3. 2002 and the inspection team recommended to the State for issue of an Essentiality Certificate on the ground that the petitioner has fulfilled the norms and requirements prescribed by the Dental Council of India for establishment of a dental college. Nevertheless, the State Government rejected the application for issue of an Essentiality Certificate by its order dated 15. 5. 2002. Questioning the said order, the petitioner has filed W. P. No. 3552 of 2003.

(3.) THE petitioner has also filed W. P. No. 3553 of 2003 to declare the order of the State Government made in G. O. Ms. No. 211 Health and Family Welfare Department dated 13. 8. 2001 containing certain guidelines for issuance of the Essentiality Certificate as invalid.