GURVINDER KAUR Vs. PUNJAB UNIVERSITY CHANDIGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) TWELVE Civil Writ Petitions Nos. 2198, 2201, 2286, 2287, 2342, 2355, 2356, 2358, 2359, 2360, 2368, and 2395 of 1970 filed under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India have been heard together as they raised certain common questions of law. It would be easier to dispose of each case separately on its own facts after the basic general principles have been settled by reference to the rules and regulations of the respondent University of Punjab and also by reference to the case law on the subject.

(2.) THE petitioners in all these cases appeared in one or the other examination conducted by the respondent University in the months of April or early May, 1970. The Rules and Regulations concerning such examinations are contained in the University Calendar for the year 1969 but certain amendments to these rules and regulations, particularly in regard to the award of grace marks, were under the contemplation of the University authorities at that time. These amendments of the University regulations were finally approved by the Central Government under Section 31 (1) of the Punjab University Act, 1947 on 18-4-1970 and were published in Part III, Section 4 of the Gazette of India, dated 30-5-1970 on pages 337-360 as required by Section 35 of the said Act. Regulations governing the functions of the Senate have then been framed under Sections 11 (2) and 31 (2) (c) of the Punjab University Act and are contained in Chapter IV of the Punjab University Calendar 1969 Volume I at pages 52-58. Regulation 21 on page 57 lays down the procedure for making regulations under Section 31 and requires that regulations passed by the Senate have to be forwarded to the Government for sanction and that after the sanction has been received, the common seal of the University has to be affixed to the regulations and that they have to be published in the Punjab Gazette. Regulation 21 then says that the regulations take effect from the date of their publication in the Gazette unless any other date is named therein as the date on which it is to come into force.

(3.) GENERAL results of some of these examinations held in April-May 1970 were declared on 30-5-1970, the date on which the amendments to the University Regulations had been published in the Government of India Gazette, while results of some other examinations held during these months were declared on later dates. The petitioners in all these cases were declared to have failed on the assumption that the regulations, as amended, were applicable to them. Results of some of these petitioners had been held over as the letters 'r. L. ' appeared against their names in the general results. I am told that these letters stand for the words "results Later". The reason why the declaration of these results was held up is not very clear on the record unless it was the intention that the candidates may not be able to take advantage of certain observations made in the earlier rulings of this Court. It may appear that even if the University authorities had tried to keep themselves on the right side of the phraseology, they had been trying to circumvent the real spirit or the ratio decidedness of these rulings which would be discussed in greater detail further on in this judgment.