RAMESHWARAM BHADADA Vs. UNIVERSITY OF JODHPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner in this case is a professor and head of the department of Mining in the Faculty of Engineering, University of Jodhpur. He has come to this court for the issue of a writ of quo-warranto, challenging the appointment of the third respondent Prof. S. C. Goyal as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering being contrary to Statute 14 of the Statutes of the University. He has also asked for a mandamus that this court should direct the respondents Nos. 1 and 2 to appoint him as a Dean, Faculty of Engineering in place of Prof. S. C. Goyal.

(2.) THE University of Jodhpur was created on 12-6 1962 by the Jodhpur University Act, 1962 Act No. 17 of 1962) hereinafter referred to as 'the Act' ). THE University started with as manv as seven Faculties including the Faculty of Engineering. THE Departments of studies assigned to the Facility of Engineering consist of (i) Civil, (ii) Structural, (iii) Mechanical, (iv) Electrical, (v) Mining, and (vi) Metallurgy. Each Faculty has to be headed by a Dean. Except the first Statutes of the University, Senate has been empowered to make statutes under sec. 22 of the Act. THE parties- rely upon the statutes of the University as contained in the schedule in the Handbook of University of Jodhpur (1973 edition ). Statute 14 deals with the the appointment of Dean of each Faculty and the functions that a Dean has to perform. It is this statute which falls for interpretation in the present case. It reads as follows : "14. (1) THEre shall be a Dean of each Faculty who shall be appointed by the Vicechancellor in the following order of preference, namely: (i) Professors in the University or Principals of Colleges and Heads of Institutions by seniority; (ii) Readers in the subjects assigned to the Faculty in which there are no Professors. Note: - (1) THE person to be appointed Dean must profess a subject included in the Faculty concerned. (2) In case, in any Faculty, no person satisfies the above qualifications for being nominated as Dean, the Vice-Chancellor shall nominate a Senior Teacher as Dean in the Faculty. (2) THE Dean shall hold office for a term of three years and no person shall be eligible for reappointment as Dean until a period of at least three years has elapsed after the expiry of his last term: Provided that the Vice-Chancellor may waive this condition for those professional Faculties which have only one Professor. (3) THE Dean of each Faculty shall be the Chief Academic and Executive Officer of the Faculty and shall preside at its meetings. (4) THE Dean shall issue the lecture lists of the University in the Departments comprised in the Faculty, and shall be responsible for the conduct of teaching therein. (5) THE Dean shall have the right to be present and to speak at any meeting of any cornmittee of the Faculty but not to vote thereat unless he is a member of the Committee.

(3.) AGAIN in a Single Bench case of this Court, Satish Chandra Sharma vs. University of Rajasthan, Jaipur (4): a question arose whether the office of member of Syndicate is a public office. Tyagi J. after having considered the case law on the point held as follows : "these observations, when read in the light of the duties assigned) to the Syndicate by the Act itself, makes it absolutely clear that the membership of a Syndicate in the University is not only an office but is a public office and as such the petitioner who is a registered graduate of the University has a right to seek for a writ of quo warranto against the respondent who, according to him, have been declared elected in clear violation of the Ordinance made by the Syndicate for conducting the election of its members. "