B.Thana Pavithra v. The Registrar
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT DATED: 08.06.2026
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE HEMANT CHANDANGOUDAR and W.M.P(MD)No.8241 of 2026
1. B.Thana Pavithra
2. Parasakthi Nagar .. Petitioners - Vs. -
1. The Registrar, Anna University, Chennai
2. The Director, Centre For Academic Courses, Anna University, Chennai.
3. The Principal, VV College of Engineering, Sathankulam, Tuticorin District.
... Respondents Prayer : Writ Petition is filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying this Court Writ Petition, filed under Article 226 of the 1/10
Constitution of India, praying this court to issue a Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus calling for the records pursuant to the impugned letter in letter No. AU/CAC/3305/3492/2025-2026 dated 01.12.2025 passed by the 2nd Respondent and quash the same and consequently direct the 1st and 2nd Respondents to approve Petitioners completion of degree and issue the 8th Semester grade sheet, Provisional Certificate and Consolidated Grade Sheet to the Petitioner within a time-frame fixed by this Court.
For Petitioners :Mr.S.Sangeetha Sri For R1 :Mrs.H.Jasmina Yasmin for M/s.Ajmal Associates For R3 :Mr.R.Arvindraj For R2 : No appearance
O R D E R
The petitioner challenges the communication dated 01.12.2025 issued by the second respondent, whereby the request made by the third respondent-college to enrol the petitioner for the additional course, namely, "Wireless Communication" (6th Semester subject), came to be 2/10
rejected on the ground that the maximum period prescribed for completion of the course had expired in April/May 2022. 2.The brief facts leading to the filing of the writ petition are as follows:
The petitioner joined the B.E. Electronics and Communication Engineering course in the third respondent-college, affiliated to Anna University, in the year 2015 and completed up to the 7th Semester in April 2019. However, she could not write the 8th Semester examination due to shortage of attendance. Thereafter, the petitioner sought readmission in the year 2020 and was permitted to rejoin the 8th Semester under the 2017 Regulations. The petitioner states that she was instructed to follow the 2017 Regulations, under which the subject "Wireless Communication" and the subject "Soft Computing" formed part of Elective-V. According to the petitioner, based on the credit mapping provided by the second respondent, she was exempted from "Wireless Communication" and instead completed "Soft Computing" under Elective-V. She thereafter appeared for the examinations held in April/May 2025 and successfully passed all the subjects. 3/10
3.After publication of the results, the petitioner approached the third respondent-college for issuance of her original degree certificate, consolidated mark sheet and other certificates. However, she was informed that the said certificates had been withheld by the second respondent on the ground that she had not completed the course, since she had neither undergone nor appeared for the examination in the additional subject "Wireless Communication", which is a 6th Semester subject.
4.The request made by the third respondent-college to permit the petitioner to write the additional subject, namely, "Wireless Communication", was also rejected on the ground that the maximum period prescribed for completion of the course had already expired. 5.At the time when the petitioner joined the B.E. Electronics and Communication Engineering course in the year 2015, "Wireless Communication" was not one of the additional subjects. Subsequently, the 2017 Regulations were introduced, under which "Wireless Communication" became an additional subject required to be completed 4/10
by a candidate under the revised curriculum. Regulation 18.3 of the 2017 Regulations provides that where a candidate is permitted to rejoin the programme after a break of study or prevention due to lack of attendance, such candidate shall be governed by the Regulations in force at the time of rejoining.
6.The said Regulation further provides that students rejoining under the new Regulations shall apply to the Director, Academic Courses, through the Head of the Institution, at the beginning of the readmitted semester for prescribing additional subjects, if any, from any semester under the Regulations then in force. In terms of Regulation 18.3, though the petitioner had originally joined the course in 2015, she did not complete the course due to shortage of attendance and was subsequently readmitted. Therefore, she was required to complete the course in accordance with the 2017 Regulations, which required her to complete the subject "Wireless Communication". 7.Regulation 16.1(ii) provides that a student shall be eligible for the award of a B.E./B.Tech. degree only if he or she has successfully 5/10
completed all course requirements and passed all the subjects prescribed for the eight semesters within a maximum period of seven years from the date of admission to the first year of the programme. In the present case, the petitioner joined the course in the year 2015 and was therefore required to complete the course on or before April/May 2022. 8.However, having regard to the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, it appears that the petitioner was under the bona fide impression that she was not required to appear for the subject "Wireless Communication" and that completion of the subject "Soft Computing" under Elective-V was sufficient for satisfying the academic requirements. 9.
No prejudice would be caused if the petitioner is permitted to write the examination in the subject "Wireless Communication", as she has successfully completed all other papers in the course. It is also relevant to note that the petitioner was readmitted during the COVID-19 pandemic period. In the considered view of this Court, the petitioner has made out a case for being granted one opportunity to write the examination in the subject "Wireless Communication".
10.Accordingly, this writ petition is disposed of with a direction to the second respondent to permit the petitioner to appear for the examination in the subject "Wireless Communication" at the next ensuing examination, subject to payment of the prescribed examination fee and compliance with all other requirements. 11.It is made clear that this order is passed in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the present case and shall not be treated as a precedent. In the event the petitioner successfully passes the said subject, the second respondent shall award the appropriate degree and issue all consequential certificates to the petitioner.
12.There shall be no order as to costs. Consequently, the connected miscellaneous petition is closed.
08.06.2026 Index :Yes / No NCC :Yes / No PJL 7/10
To
1. The Registrar, Anna University, Chennai
2. The Director, Centre For Academic Courses, Anna University, Chennai.
8/10
9/10
HEMANT CHANDANGOUDAR, J.
PJL 08.06.2026 10/10