R SHYAMALA Vs. STATE OF TAMILNADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) OVERSIGHT Committee's order under challenge: 1.1. The petitioners in W.P.Nos.33512 of 2006 and 34740 of 2006, viz., Dr.Rajah Muthiah Chettiar Charitable and Educational Trust, represented by its Trustee, which is running the Chettinad Hospitals and Research Institute (for short, 'CHARI') at Padur, Kancheepuram District, and P.S.G. Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (for short, 'PSGIMSR') which is running the Medical College at Coimbatore respectively, have formed an Association called Tamil Nadu Private Medical Colleges' Association (for short, 'Association') and sought permission from the Permanent Committee for the Common Entrance Test for Private Professional Colleges in Tamil Nadu (for short, 'Justice Subramani Committee') constituted by the State of Tamil Nadu pursuant to the judgment of the Supreme Court made in Islamic Academy case for approving their admission procedure for MBBS Course for the academic year 2006 � 2007. 1.2. Justice Subramani Committee, after several rounds of discussion and consultations, approved the admission procedure adopted by these two Colleges and also recognised the Tamil Nadu Private Medical Colleges' Association as an Association to conduct the Common Entrance Test (for short, 'CET'). The Committee by its order dated 10.6.2006 gave detailed guidelines and also fixed the time schedule for conducting the examination. The Schedule appended to the order is extracted below: �SCHEDULE . Issue of application forms � From 21.6.2006 . Last date for submitting the application � 5.7.2006 . Entrance examination � 14.7.2006 . Centres of Examination � Chennai and Coimbatore. At Chennai: 1. Rajah Muthiah Hall 2. Rani Meyyammai Hall, Dr. Ruckmani Lakshmipathi Salai, Egmore, Chennai. At Coimbatore: PSG Institute of Medical Science and Research, Peelamedu, Coimbatore. . Results to be published along with rank list �24.7.2006. (Copy of rank list to be submitted to the Committee simultaneously). . Counselling � From 26.7.2006 at Chennai. Location will be informed to the candidates individually with notice to the Committee sufficiently earlier after giving due publicity. . Admission will be closed on or before 31.7.2006 . For filling up of NRI seats � till 15.9.2006. To fill up seats if any due to non filing of NRI seats, to be completed on or before 30.9.2006.� While the Committee in paragraph 18 of the order gave a direction that the admission should be made on the basis of the rank list prepared by the centralised counseling by following the single window system of admission, it was also stated that the Association agency will call the candidates in the order of merit and fill up the seats in the participating Colleges on the basis of the options exercised by the students during the process of counselling. 1.3. Subsequently, another College, viz., Sree Mookambikai Institute of Medical Science, Kanyakumari District, got itself included in the Association and opted for the CET even though it was the only minority run College in the State. Pursuant to the approval, a prospectus was issued by the Association indicating the intention to conduct the examination on 14.7.2006. It was stated that the examination will be conducted in two centres in the State, viz., at Chennai and Coimbatore and nowhere it is stated that candidates should exercise their option for getting admitted in either of the two colleges in case they are successfully ranked in the selection list. However, in the application, a column was given providing option in the three Colleges but at no point of time, it was stated that admission will be made only on the basis of the option exercised by the candidates. Even though the said examination was conducted as per the time schedule, the results were not published on 24.7.2006 and the rank list was not submitted to the Committee on time. 1.4. In the prospectus issued by the Association, it was mentioned that CHARI will have 150 seats and in respect of PSGIMSR, only 100 seats was mentioned. But it was indicated that apart from the NRIs of 15%, the other seats will be filled up through CET and communal roster will also be followed. However, while these proceedings were going on, on the initiative taken by the State of Tamil Nadu, these two private Medical Colleges agreed to have some seat sharing arrangement with the Government and gave a consent to surrender 65% of the seats being the two non-minority Colleges for the academic year 2006 � 2007. May be with this understanding, the State of Tamil Nadu issued G.O.Ms.No.129 Health and Family Welfare (MCA1) Department dated 26.7.2006 prescribing the admission procedure along with apportionment of the seats for the Government and unaided Colleges. 1.5. In that order, in paragraph 3(c), the Government indicated that for filling up of the seats retained by the Managements, single window system will not be insisted upon. Excepting for the conditions indicated in paragraph 3, the Government stated that the orders issued by the Committee in respect of the other conditions as laid down by the Committee, will have to be followed. It was ostensibly for this reason, the Association and three of its member Colleges were waiting and did not publish the results as directed by the committee and it took considerable time for them to publish the results. The results were finally published in the website on 18.8.2006 and the rank list was published on 28.8.2006 and copy was also sent to Justice Subramani Committee. 1.6.It was stated by the CHARI that they have received 150 applications for 30 seats to be filled up by them and they have unilaterally segregated the applications for the purpose of granting admission and provisional selection list was submitted by them to the Committee. However, the Committee, by order dated 07.9.2006, wrote to them which is as follows:

(2.) CASE of the unsuccessful students: 2.1. At this stage, some students came to this Court including minor R.Shyamala, the petitioner in W.P.No.34902 of 2006, stating that even though she was meritorious, her case was not considered by these two Colleges and she sought for a direction to the respondents 3 to 5 in that writ petition to conclude the selection and admission of the students in the Management quota in MBBS Course for the year 2006 � 2007 by conducting counselling uninfluenced by the preference clause and purely on merits following the rule of reservation. 2.2. This Court, while admitting the writ petition on 25.9.2006, dismissed the petition for interim order as this Court had already granted stay of the order passed by Justice Subramani Committee on 15.9.2006. It is against this interim order, minor Shyamala preferred writ appeal being W.A.No.1269 of 2006 and the matter came up before this Bench. As the two interim orders passed by the learned Judges were followed while declining the interim relief claimed by the appellant (Minor Shyamala) in the appeal, this Court, in view of the urgency and importance of the issue, directed all the writ petitions to be posted along with this writ appeal to be heard so that a common order can be passed. 2.3. In Writ Appeal Nos.1253 of 2006 and 1269 of 2006 and four other writ petitions, which came up before this Court, this Court on 28.9.2006 passed the following order:

(3.) SUBMISSION of the students: