DAMPREET WALIA Vs. PUNJABI UNIVERSITY, PATIALA AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has approached this Court through the present petition filed under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India with a prayer to issue a writ of mandamus for directing the respondents Punjabi University and the Department of Laws of the University to admit the petitioner in the L.L.B. (3 years course) at the Punjabi University Campus, Patiala, as per his merit in The Combined Entrance Test.

(2.) The petitioner had passed his matriculation examination from the Punjab School, Education Board in the year 1998 securing 76% marks. Thereafter, the petitioner got admission in the department of Electrical Engineering Course in the Thapar Polytechnic at Patiala in the year 1998. He completed the aforesaid Diploma Course in the year 2001. With a view to get his graduation degree, the petitioner took Lateral Engineering Entrance Test in the year 2001 for admission to the degree course. The petitioner secured 4th position in the General Category in the entrance test, as a consequence of which, he was admitted to the Bachelor in Technology in Electrical Engineering Course at Shaheed Udham Singh College of Engineering and Technology, which is affiliated to the Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar. It is the case of the petitioner that he duly qualified the aforesaid Bachelor Course and, as such, graduated himself. A provisional certificate in recognition of the aforesaid qualification was issued by the Assistant Registrar of the Shaheed Udham Singh College of Engineering and Technology on June 21, 2004. A copy of the aforesaid certificate has been appended as Annexure P/1 with the present petition. The petitioner, thereafter, appeared in the Combined Entrance Test for admission to the three years and law five years L.L.B. Course in the Law Faculty at the University Campus of the Punjabi University. He sought admission to three years L.L.B. Course. The petitioner cleared the aforesaid Combined Entrance Examination and was placed at Serial 47 in the General Category. In view of his merit position, the petitioner was called for counselling before admission on July 22, 2004. As per Hand Book of Information, the petitioner was required to produce the original certificate showing his eligibility as well as the admit card. The petitioner appeared for counselling on the aforesaid date and, produced the certificate Annexure P/1 dated June 21, 2004 as well as the admit card, issued by the University, vide which the petitioner had undertaken the entrance test. However, admission to the petitioner was denied by the University on the ground that the aforesaid certificate Annexure P/1 was issued by the Assistant Registrar of the Shaheed Udham Singh College of Engineering and Technology and was not issued by the Punjab Technical University, from where the petitioner had so graduated in Engineering. The petitioner has, consequently, approached this court through the present petition challenging the denial of admission to him.

(3.) The claim of the petitioner has been contested by the respondents. A written statement has been filed by respondents Nos. 1 to 3. The only technical objection raised by the respondents in the written statement is that since the petitioner had not produced the original certificate issued by the Punjab Technical University relating to his eligibility, therefore, he was not entitled to admission. Although, it has been specifically pleaded by the petitioner in the present petition that he had graduated in Engineering from the Punjab Technical University and to assert that fact has even appended a copy of the gazette notification issued by the Punjab Technical University as Annexure P/2, wherein the roll number of the petitioner is indicated as 12505400 and he is shown to have qualified the aforesaid examination. In the written statement filed by the respondents, it has not been stated by them at all, that the petitioner was not an Engineering Graduate on the day when he had appeared for the counselling or when he had appeared in the Combined Entrance Test. In these circumstances, it is apparent that only a technical objection has been raised with regard to the eligibility of the petitioner that the certificate, showing his eligibility, produced by the petitioner at the time of counselling was not issued by the University but was issued by the institute from where he had graduated.