TVL ARUNA MALAI COLLEGE OF EDUCATION RUN Vs. SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT HIGHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT FORT ST GEORGE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners, educational institutions, after having admitted the students before they were granted affiliation by the second respondent/University, are now before this Court pleading the plight of the students.

(2.) THE facts in W.P. No.45461 of 2006 are stated hereunder:

(3.) LEARNED senior counsel appearing for the petitioners submitted that the NCTE had granted recognition to the petitioner/institutions for conducting the B.Ed. Degree Course for the academic year 2005-2006. This was immediately communicated to the first and second respondents also. Therefore, there could have been no doubt in the mind of the second respondent regarding the grant of recognition and the second respondent cannot take advantage of the fact that the gazette notification came later. The second respondent ought to have seen that the provisions of the NCTE Act are imperative, and the University 'shall grant affiliation' once recognition is granted. Therefore, this being a mere formality, the second respondent ought not to stand on technicalities and take the gazette notification as the reference point and refuse to grant recognition for the academic year 2005-2006. LEARNED senior counsel also submitted that this was really not a case of retrospective affiliation, since the petitioners have made their applications in time for grant of affiliation for the academic year 2005-2006 and if only the second respondent had acted promptly, the students who had been admitted in the petitioner/institutions for the academic year 2005-2006 would not have been placed in this limbo where, though they have attended the classes for the academic year 2005-2006, their period of study would be of no avail.