Naitik Sharma vs University Of Rajasthan And Ors

The facts giving rise to the petition are that after passing the Senior Secondary Examination, the petitioner could not get admitted in Academic Year 2017-18 as a regular student in the Maharaja College, Jaipur in B.Sc. (Mathematics) (hereinafter 'B.Sc.') for reason of his marks at the qualifying Senior Secondary Examination being lesser than the cut off marks for admission to the said course. Despite this set back, the petitioner gathered some hope from the University of Rajasthan's (hereinafter 'University') prospectus for Under Graduate/ Post Graduate studies which inter alia provides that:-

6.Admission of Non-collegiate Candidates:A candidate passing the First Year/Second Year/PartI/Part-II Examination of a course of study as a noncollegiate student (wherever permitted) shall not be eligible for admission to the next higher class in a college. However a candidate passing the previous examination of a course of study as a non-collegiate candidate may be considered for admission to the next higher class of the same course of study if seats are available, provided (I) A candidate who secures a minimum of 50% marks in the case of Faculties of Arts, Fine Arts and Social Sciences, and 55% marks in the case of Faculties of Science and Commerce in the aggregate at the First year/ Part-I Examination of the University or an examination recognised by the University as equivalent thereto shall be eligible for admission as a regular student to the next higher class of the same course of study.

The petitioner enrolled himself as a non-collegiate student with the University of Rajasthan and took comfort from the fact that he were to pass the B.Sc. Part-I examination as a noncollegiate student with more than 55% marks, he would seek a lateral admission to B.Sc. Part-II against a hopefully vacant seat as a regular student in the Maharaja College, Jaipur. The petitioner then worked hard in B.Sc. Part-I as a non-collegiate student for academic year 2017-18 and appeared in the examination following conducted by the University. He passed the said examination with the 65.11% marks in the aggregate.

Having so passed the B.Sc. Part-I examination, the petitioner downloaded from the official website an application form for admission into B.Sc. Part-II with the Maharaja College as a regular student for the academic year 2018-19, filled it up as required and approached the office of the Principal, Maharaja College a constituent college of the University seeking admission as a regular student in B.Sc. Part-II in terms of the University's prospectus 2018-19 for Under Graduate/ Post Graduate studies. But at the level of clerk itself, the petitioner an aspiring student with a right of consideration conferred by the University's prospectus was not entertained and instead informed that noncollegiate students were not being admitted to the Maharaja College as regular students in any course, as a practice for the past several years. The petitioner undaunted approached the Principal of the Maharaja College, Jaipur immediately submitting that he was eligible for getting admission into B.Sc. Part-II in terms of the University's prospectus of 2018-19 as he was a good student having scored 65.11% marks in the B.Sc. Part-I examination as a non-collegiate student and a vacant seat being available in B.Sc. Part-II at the college. The petitioner reminded the authority concerned that in terms of the University's prospectus of 2018-19 eligible non-collegiate students who passed the B.A./B.Sc. Part-I examination of the University were being admitted to B.A./B.Sc. Part-II at the Maharani College, Jaipur, Commerce College, and Rajasthan College all constituent colleges of the University of Rajasthan and infact advertisement for such admissions has been published on the University's website for admission to Maharani College, Jaipur. The Principal in the circumstances did finally relent on taking a positive view and accepted the application form on 26.06.2018 wherein the petitioner was seeking admission to B.Sc. Part-II on vacant seat as a regular student on the basis of his performance (65.11%) in the B.Sc. Part-I examination as a non-collegiate student.

The case of the petitioner is that his application for admission as a regular student in B.Sc. Part-II with the Maharaja College, Jaipur with reference to the provision for such admission in the University's prospectus of 2018-19 for Under Graduate/Post Graduate studies has been arbitrarily kept pending to his detriment while the academic year 2018-19 runs out. No reason has emanated from the college for so doing, despite various representations to the Principal, Maharaja College and the Vice Chancellor University. It has been submitted that the petitioner's father was also concerned with the wrongful denial of the petitioner's rights aforesaid by sheer violation and hence moved an application under Right to Information Act, 2005 on 05.07.2018 with the requisite fee. The Principal, Maharaja College, Jaipur responded to the said application vide his letter dated 26.07.2018 disclosing facts- by clear inference that 80 seats in the B.Sc. Part-II are lying vacant with the Maharaja College. But no reason for the petitioner yet being denied admission to the said course has been set out except stating that since 2003-04 noncollegiate students were not being given admission as regular students into higher class as a matter of policy by the Maharaja College, Jaipur.

The petitioner has in the circumstances impugned his nonadmission in Academic Year 2018-19 into B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College despite his eligibility and a specific provision therefor under the University's prospectus entitling him to be considered for admission. It has been submitted that the reasons set out for the refusal of admission to the petitioner, as clear from the Principal's letter dated 26.07.2018 in response to the petitioner's father's RTI application, are unjustified and are wholly arbitrary. It has been submitted that the purported policy and practice since 2003-04 of not admitting non-collegiate students as regular students in higher classes in Maharaja College despite their eligibility is contrary to the specific provision for the purpose in the prospectus of the University for graduate and post graduate studies for academic year 2018-19 and cannot legally sustain. It has been submitted that the prospectus for Under graduate and post graduate studies makes it clear that non-collegiate students who obtain more than 55 % marks in Part-I and Part-II course are entitled to be considered for admission in the next higher class as regular student against vacant seats in a college in the relevant class/es. The petitioner as a non-collegiate student of the University having 65.11 marks in B.Sc. Part-I, and seats in B.Sc. Part-II evidently available in the Maharaja College as per the letter dated 26.07.2018 under the hand of the Principal is entitled to admission. It has been submitted that the respondent-Maharaja College is a constituent of the University as are Commerce College, Maharani College and Rajasthan College, which in terms of the University's prospectus of 2018-19 are admitting noncollegiate students to the next higher class on the condition of their having a minimum of 55 % marks in the lower class and the availability of vacant seats in the higher class in the subject they seek admission. In this circumstances there was no cause whatsoever, submitted petitioner's counsel, for the respondents to deny the petitioner his right to be admitted as a regular student in B.Sc. Part-II in Maharaja college in Academic Year 2018-19.

Dr.R.K. Sharma appearing for the respondents both the University and College submitted that there are no vacant seats in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College and hence the petitioner could not be admitted as a regular student in the said course despite having scored 65.11 % marks in B.Sc. Part-I as a noncollegiate student. He further submitted that in fact since the Academic year 2004-05, the respondent-Maharaja College as a policy decision has not admitted any non-collegiate student into the next higher class even if they had the requisite percentage of 55% or more in the lower class. Dr.R.K. Sharma submitted that in any event in the middle of December 2018 B.Sc. Part-II classes have long commenced beginning the month of July 2018 and the annual examination therein has to be held in the First week of March 2019. It was submitted that in the circumstance the petitioner would not be able to have the requisite minimum attendance of 75% in B.A. Part-II as a regular student and nor has he participated in the practicals necessary for B.Sc. Part-II. Thus presenting a fait accompli Dr.R.K. Sharma submitted that the petition be therefore dismissed.

Heard. Considered.

In a democratic country governed by the rule of law the rights of the citizens conferred by law, executive guidelines, circulars and administrative orders of the competent authority are to be protected. The issue in this petition is whether the petitioner as a non-collegiate student of B.Sc. Part-I is entitled to admission into B.Sc. Part-II as a regular student with the Mahraja College, a constituent college of the University. Whether such an admission can be made or not is not up in the air to be arbitrarily determined but the issue has to be addressed with reference to the obtaining rules/directions/prospectus of the University itself of which the respondent no.2 is a constituent college. And the University's prospectus for graduate and post graduate studies for the year 2018-19 admittedly provides for admission of non-collegiate B.Sc. Part-I students as regular students of B.Sc. Part-II in the colleges both constituent/ affiliated to the University in the event of prescribed preconditions being fulfilled.

Two conditions for the purpose are prescribed i.e. (i) such student should have a minimum of 55 % marks in B.Sc. Part-I. (ii) there should be a vacant seat in course of study to which admission as regular student is sought. No other condition of eligibility can be added thereto. No deviation on purported policy of a constituent college from the prospectus of the University can be contemplated or permitted. No practice or policy of a college, no matter for how long, contrary to the terms of the prospectus of the University for the year 2018-19 can be resorted to, for denying a non-collegiate student, if otherwise eligible and seat being vacant, from being admitted to the higher class in the relevant subject as a regular student. The petitioner admittedly scored 65.11 marks in the B.Sc. Part-I as a non-collegiate student. Importantly, as admitted the said marks have been obtained by the petitioner at an examination of the University writing papers identical to those written by a regular University students of B.Sc. Part-I including by those reading B.Sc. Part-I at the Maharaja College, Jaipur. The question of the petitioner's merit is not thus an issue and the effort of Dr.R.K. Sharma to take this court to the petitioner's Senior Secondary Examination marks, on which first the admission to B.Sc. (Mathematics) Part-I were made in Academic Year 2017-18 is a red herring and quite irrelevant.

Dr.R.K. Sharma then submitted, on instruction of Dr.Ramveer Singh, Principal, Maharaja College, Jaipur who is present in court to defend the petition without so being required by the court despite counsel already representing both respondents, that there are no vacant seats in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College. I find the submission wholly perverse to material on record. For one there is nothing on record to bring out that a specified number of seats in B.Sc. Part-II in the Academic Year 2018-19 at the Maharaja College, Jaipur were provided for by an order. Further a perusal of the letter dated 26.07.2018 under the hand of the Principal, Maharaja College himself indicates that there are four section in the B.Sc. Part-II with 89/78/92/84 students respectively. Evidently the number of students in the four different sections of B.Sc. Part-II in Academic Year 2018-19 is not uniform.

Dr.R.K. Sharma submitted that the number of students in each section is dependent upon the subject choices of the students. Be as it may, quite clearly there being no limit to the number of students in each of the four section in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College in the Academic Year 2018-19 and the number of seats in B.Sc. Part-II overall being 303 vis-a-vis 383 seats in B.Sc. Part-I it is crystal clear that there is definitely and ought to be more than one vacancy and upto 80 vacancies in B.Sc. Part-II. The question is what if more than 303 students out of 383 students in B.Sc. Part-I had passed. Indeed they all would be accommodated in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College in the Academic Year 2018-19. The argument of Dr.R.K. Sharma of no vacant seats obtaining for the petitioner in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College in the Academic Year 2018-19 is thus factually unsustainable and of no avail. The benefit of the prospectus of the University for graduate and post graduate studies cannot thus be denied to the petitioner as he satisfies both the conditions set out in the prospectus of University for graduate and post graduate studies for the year 2018-19 for admission of a non-collegiate student as a regular student in the higher class in constituent colleges of the University of Rajasthan.

Now with regard to the argument of Dr.R.K. Sharma that the petitioner if now admitted would not have the requisite minimum 75 % attendance in B.Sc. Part-II as warranted under the University of Rajasthan Ordinances. This argument has to be noticed only for outright rejection. It is an admitted fact that the petitioner had applied for admission into B.Sc. Part-II as early as 26.06.2018. The denial of admission to the petitioner by the respondents contrary to the University's own prospectus for the year 2018-19 definitely binding on its constituent Maharaja College cannot be held against the petitioner. None can benefit from one's own wrong-as the respondents shockingly seek so do in the instant case. Having arbitrarily kept out the petitioner from admission to B.Sc. Part-II the Maharaja College despite necessary preconditions therefor in the University's prospectus being satisfied the respondents cannot set up a defence on the petitioner's attendance being short for the annual examination of B.Sc. Part-II for 2018, if the illegality of denying the petitioner's right is set aside under the court's order.

In the circumstance, I would direct that the petitioner's attendance, following his admission now being short will not be a ground to deny him writing the B.Sc. Part-II examination when held. The petitioner be admitted as a regular student to B.Sc. Part-II at the Maharaja College, Jaipur to which he had applied on 26.06.2018 within a period of 7 days from today and petitioner would thereafter be under an obligation to attend classes of B.Sc. Part-II regularly.

Finally, it is also necessary to deal with the last argument in defence by the University as propagated by Dr.R.K. Sharma i.e. with regard to the petitioner not having participated in the practicals for B.Sc. Part-II, the impossibility of so doing now at this belated stage and for this reason any direction for his admission in B.Sc. Part-II in Maharaja College being futile. That argument is a desperate one as it has been stated by Mr.Vinod Kumar Gupta and admitted by Dr.R.K. Sharma on Dr.Ramveer Singh instructions that the petitioner has indeed participated in the practicals of B.Sc. Part-II as a non-collegiate student in which capacity he per force had to pursue the course in the face of the respondents' arbitrary denial of admission to the said class as a regular students. It is also admitted that the level of practicals for B.Sc. Part-II is the same for non-collegiate students as for regular student in B.Sc. Part-II.

In the circumstances this petition is allowed. It is directed that the petitioner on his application dated 26.06.2018 be now admitted as a regular student in B.Sc. Part-II in the Maharaja College, Jaipur within 7 days from today.