SURJIT PANIGRAHI Vs. PRINCIPAL SIKKIM GOVT LAW COLLEGE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner was a student of three year LL.B. course in Sikkim Govt. Law College at Gangtok affiliated with the North Bengal University. He passed the Intermedicate Examination held in 1997. He was not admitted to the examination for the third year to be held in 1998 on the ground that he could not secure requisite number of attendance. Case of the petitioner is that the register of attendance was manipulated by the College authorities with the result that he was not given attendance as per the factual position. He has prayed for a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus/certiorari declaring that attendance registers were manipulated unlawfully and are, therefore, null and void and could not be based for counting of requisite percentage of attendance to qualify in the final year of three year LL.B. course. A further mandamus has been sought directing the respondents to supply the examination form and to allow him to appear in the final year examination scheduled to be held from 19/08/1998 to 3 1/08/1998. Undoubtedly, this relief has become infructuous. A further writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus/certiorari is claimed for declaring the act of respondent No. 1 to change the schedule time of evening classes from 4.00 p.m. and onwards to 1.45 p.m. and onwards, illegal and against the norms of the North Bengal University. Some other ancillary reliefs are also claimed. On 14/07/1998, this Court took note of the fact that the writ petition contains several disputed questions of facts which this Court could not enter into. Therefore, a Special Officer was appointed to examine the Principal, Law College, Lecturers of Sikkim Government Law College, the petitioner and others and also the documents which the Special Officer would consider appropriate. The Special Officer was required to submit report as to whether the statements made in the writ petition are correct or not. Initially, Secretary (Law), Government of Sikkim was appointed as Special Officer and, subsequently, Shri B. C. Sharma, District and Sessions Judge, South and West was substituted in his place, vide order dated 30/11/1998. The report of the Special Officer, Shri B. C. Sharma, has been received to the effect that the allegations in the petition are wild and without substance. Similar report dated 14/08/1998 of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of North Bengal which was submitted in pursuance of the order is also on record. Relevant portion of the report reads as under :-

(2.) After hearing arguments, we see no reason to come to a different conclusion. Apart from lack of merit, for another reason also, the petitioner is not entitled to any relief, as he did not come with clean hands. Paragraph 3 of the writ petition states as under :-

(3.) The statement that the Principal, Sikkim Government Law College, all of a sudden in the midst of the session arbitrarily changed the evening classes hours from 4.00 p.m. onwards to 1.45 p.m. onwards has to be treated as factually untrue, for the purpose of the petition, as vide application dated 17/11/1997 addressed to the Principal, 22 students made a request, in view of the difficulties faced by them to attend the classes from 4.00 p.m., to change the timing of the classes to 2.00 p.m. onwards. The petitioner concealed the material fact that the timing was changed on the request of 22 students. The allegation made by him that the timing was changed all of a sudden and arbitrarily was misleading. Accordingly, the petition is dismissed with costs, computed at Rs. 2,000.00 payable to the Principal, Sikkim Government Law College, respondent No. 1. Petition dismissed.