Swami Vivekanand B.Ed. Teachers Training College, Delhi More, v. Nalanda Open University,

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.8995 of 2019 ====================================================== Swami Vivekanand B.Ed. Teachers Training College, Delhi More, Basudevpur, Lalbagh, Darbhanga through its Secretary, Annu Kumari @ Annu (Female), aged about 59 years, Wife of Shyamnarayan Kumar, Resident of Village- Katka, P.S.- Singhwara, District- Darbhanga. ... ... Petitioner/s

Versus

1.

Nalanda Open University, Third Floor, Biscomaun Bhawan, West Gandhi Maidan, Patna through its Registrar.

2.

The Registrar, Nalanda Open University, Third Floor, Biscomaun Bhawan, West Gandhi Maidan, Patna.

3.

The State Nodal Officer-cum-Registrar, Nalanda Open University, Third Floor, Biscomaun Bhawan, West Gandhi Maidan, Patna. 4.

Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Kameshwar Nagar, Darbhanga through its Registrar.

5.

The Vice Chancellor, Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Kameshwar Nagar, Darbhanga.

6.

The Registrar, Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Kameshwar Nagar, Darbhanga.

7.

National Council for Teacher Education, (A Statutory body of the Govt. of India) Hans Bhawan Wing II, Bhadurshah Zafar Marg, New Delhi- 110002 through its Member Secretary.

8.

The Member Secretary, National Council for Teacher Education, Hans Bhawan Wing II, Bhadurshah Zafar Marg, New Delhi- 110002. 9.

The Regional Director, National Council for Teacher Education, Eastern Regional Committee, 15 Neelkantha Nagar, Nayapalli, Bhubneshwar - 751012.

... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s :

Mr. P.K. Shahi, Sr. Advocate Mr.Arun Kumar For the Respondent/s :

Mr.Navin Prasad Singh For the L.N.M.U. : Mr. Md. Nadim Seraj For the N.C.T.E. : Mr. Sunil Kumar Singh ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MOHIT KUMAR SHAH ORAL ORDER 08-05-2019 The present writ petition has been filed for issuing direction to the respondent Nalanda Open University for allotting 200 students out of the combined merit list prepared for the Academic Session 2019-20, pursuant to the combined entrance test to be held by the Nalanda Open University, in favour of the petitioner institution.

The learned senior counsel for the petitioner has

2/5 submitted that the petitioner has already got recognition/ affiliation as far as 100 seats are concerned and the only question involved in the present writ petition is with regard to the additional 100 seats for which the National Council for Teacher Education has already granted permission/recognition vide letter dated 26.02.2019.

Per contra, the learned counsel for the respondent University submits that the respondent University be granted liberty to act as per the direction issued by the Hon'ble Apex Court in a case reported in (2013) SCC 617 (Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya vs. State of U.P. & Ors.), as contained in paragraph no. 71 thereof, i.e. with regard to its right to inspect and come to a conclusion regarding the sufficiency of the statutory requirements for the purposes of running the institution as per the existing norms. It is further submitted that the petitioner college had applied for affiliation of the additional 100 seats only on 16.02.2019 which is subsequent to the prescribed time limit, as contained in the notification issued by the Chancellor dated 25.04.2018, hence the case of the petitioner for additional 100 seats would be considered for the Session 2020-21.

At this juncture, the learned senior counsel for the

3/5 petitioner has referred to the Schedule prescribed by the Hon'ble Apex Court for recognition and affiliation in the case of Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya (supra). Relying on the said judgment, it is submitted, by referring to paragraph no. 87.1.13 that as per the Schedule prescribed by the Hon'ble Apex Court, the last date for submitting proposal for affiliation is "by 10th March of each year" and the petitioner has submitted his application for affiliation before the respondent-University on 16.02.2019 i.e. well within the prescribed time frame.

Upon a query being put to the learned counsel appearing for the University, he was unable to either refute the ratio laid down in the aforesaid judgment rendered in the case of in the case of Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya (supra) or deny that the Schedule prescribed therein would be applicable in the case of the petitioner herein. Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case and having heard the learned senior counsel for the petitioners as also the learned counsel for the University and the N.C.T.E.

4/5 or disobeyed by anyone, being the law of the land under Article 141 of the Constitution. Hence, following the ratio laid down in the judgment rendered by the Hon,ble Apex Court in the case of Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya (supra) as also considering the Schedule prescribed in the said judgment, this Court holds that the application for affiliation filed by the petitioner before the respondent University is within time as far as the Session 2019-20 is concerned, hence the University is directed to process the same, in accordance with law. At this juncture, the learned senior counsel for the petitioner has referred to a judgment passed by a coordinate Bench of this Court dated 23.07.2018 in CWJC No. 13567 of 2018 (Ram Kripal Singh Teachers Training College vs. The State of Bihar & Ors.), paragraph no.

5 whereof is relevant herein below:- "5. In the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the Magadh University, it has been stated that the entire records in relation to grant of affiliation of the petitioning institutions have been transferred to the newly created Patliputra University, Patna, which came into existence with effect from 18.03.2018.

Since there is no dispute about the decision of the NCTE for enhancing the intake capacity of the Institutions, I direct that the intake capacity of the Institutions shall be treated to be 150 by all concerned, for all purposes, if there is no dispute about grant of

5/5 additional intake capacity by NCTE as noticed above."

It is submitted that the aforesaid judgment has attained finality inasmuch as the same has not been challenged, either by the University or the N.C.T.E., hence the ratio of the said judgment is required to be followed in the present case. This Court finds that though the ratio laid down by the coordinate Bench in the case of Ram Kripal Singh Teachers Training College (supra) is required to be followed in the present case in order to maintain judicial consistency but the same is subject to paragraph no. 71 of the judgment rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya (supra).

It is needless to state that the Schedule mentioned in the Maa Vaishno Devi Mahila Mahavidyalaya (supra) is required to be maintained by the respondent University in its true letter and spirit.

The writ petition stands allowed to the aforesaid extent.

(Mohit Kumar Shah, J) S.Sb/- U