Priya Kapoor vs State of Punjab and others

Swatanter Kumar, J.—The petitioner, in this writ petition, has prayed that the Court may issue a Writ of Mandamus directing the respondents to give admission to the petitioner in the category of ''Rural Area (Payment)'' to the B. D. S. Course.

The facts fall in a very narrow compass and can be stated as follows. The petitioner claims to be resident of village Dujjowal, Tehsil Ajnala, District Amritsar. This area is declared as ''rural area''by the State of Punjab and the petitioner stakes her claim on this basis. Shri Guru Ram Dass Institute of Dental Science and Research, Amritsar, has been established by Srimani Gurudwara Prabhandhak Committee and is a statutory body established under the Sikh Gurudwara Act, 1925. The Institute started working with effect from 1992-93 and is under the management of Shri Guru Ram Dass Hospital and Charitable Trust, Amritsar. The Institute is affiliated to Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.

The petitioner further states that she completed her primary education from Government Primary School, Ghonewal, District Amritsar from 1-4-1981 to 4-4-1986. This school falls in rural area and certificate to this effect has been placed on record as Annexure P/1. Then she claims to have joined the Government Middle School, Machhiwala, Tehsil Ajnala, District Amritsar and studied in that school from 16-4-1986 to 31-3-1989 and successfully completed her middle standard examination from there, which is again in the rural area and Annexure P/2 is the certificate placed on record in this behalf. The petitioner joined the Government High School, Harsha Chhina, Amritsar, and studied therefrom 8-4-1989 to 31-3-1990. The petitioner submits that because of the disturbed conditions in the State of Punjab her father shifted to Amritsar City and she joined the Government Girls Senior Secondary School, The Mall, Amritsar and passed her matriculation examination by securing 634/ 800 marks. Certificate to this effect is also placed on record as Annexure P/4. This is the period when she studied in urban area and then again in 1993 her father was transferred to Moga and the conditions in the State of Punjab had improved and the petitioner along with her family again went to her village from where she successfully completed her plus-2 examination from a rural school. Certificate in this regard Annexure P/5 is on record. Respondent No. 2 issued a prospectus for admission to B. D. S. Course for the year 1994-95 and in this brochure a special category was carved out which was stated to be ''Rural Area Category''. She claims that she fulfilled al! the eligibility conditions and the petitioner appeared in the P. M. T. test conducted by Punjabi University for 1994 under Roll No. 2072 and secured 139 marks out of 300. She was placed at No. 2426 in the merit list. The results were declared on 2-9-1994 and her name was shown al No, II. Interviews of the candidates were held on i 7-9-1994 and the petitioner was not selected in the final list. Her case is that the persons having lower merit than her have been given the seats reserved for ''Rural Area (Payment)'' category and that she has been treated arbitrarily and discriminately. With these facts the petitioner has filed this writ petition under Arts. 226/227 of the Constitution of India.

To this case of the petitioner there are different written statements, one filed by respondents Nos. 2 and 3, other filed by respondent No. 4 and still another filed by respondent No. 11. There is a specific challenge to the certificates filed on record by the petitioner as Annexures P/1 and P/2. It is stated that these certificates are not genuine. The same do not bear any number or date while the other certificates like Anntxure P/4 bear the date and number etc. Respondent No. 11 has placed on record Annexures R/1 and R/2 along with the reply, which shows that the petitioner had never taken admission in Government Primary School, Ghonewal (Amritsar) and they have never issued a certificate in this regard. Thus, a definite doubt is sought to be created with regard to the authenticity and genuineness of Annexures P/1 and P/2. It is further contended by the respondents that the petitioner does not fulfil the eligibility criteria as her entire academic career up to plus-2 is not from rural area and, as such, she is not entitled to the admission in B. D. S. Course in this special category. Further it is stated that the course had already commenced since September, 1994 and the claim of the petitioner at this stage is a belated one. The lists of the selected candidates have also been placed on record wherein ten candidates have been selected and other seven candidates were kept in the waiting list. The candidates were to pay their fees and to join their course by 20-9-1994.

Having heard the parties at length we feel that the controversy with regard to the genuineness or otherwise of Annexures P/1 and P/2 is a disputed question of fact which requires evidence and, therefore, cannot be determined in this writ petition. However, since we intend to decide this writ petition on interpretation of the relevant rule, we are taking the averments as set out by the petitioner to be correct. If, on these averments, the petitioner is held not entitled to the relief, then the writ petition must fail on that ground alone.

Before we proceed to discuss the matter any further, it will be necessary to reproduce the relevant clause of the Prospectus published by the respondents for admission to B. D. S. and other courses. Under clause (c) of the heading ''Categorisation of Seats'' the Rural Area Category seats are dealt with.

This clause reads as under :--

"For candidates having taken P. M T. examination 1993 conducted by Punjabi University, Patiala. Rural Area seals are reserved for candidates who have received their education from I st to Matric or + 2 or its equivalent examination from an Institution which is situated at a distance of more than 2 kms. from the outer limit of a Municipal Corporation/ Municipal Committee/ Notified Area Committee or Township in the State of Punjab. Certificate to this effect issued by head of the Institution and countersigned by the P. E. 0. would be entertained."

It is the admitted case of the petitioner that she completed her 10th Class in the year 1990 from Government Girls Senior Secondary School, The Mail, Amritsar and passed the examination by securing 634/800 marks. There is no averment in the writ petition as to how the petitioner having cleared her matriculation in the year 1990, has completed her 10 + 2 examination in the year 1994. Normally she would have taken two years to complete that course. The argument of the University is that she has studied for all this period in urban area i.e. Amrtisar and only to seek admission in the B. D. S. Course in the special category has done her 12th class from the rural area.

As is clear from the language of cl. (c) of the brochure these seats are reserved for rural area category. The language of (he rule clearly indicates that a candidate must complete her education from 1st lo final examination from the rural area i.e. from st to matric, 1st to 10 + 2 or its equivalent examination from an Institution which is at a distance of more than two kilometres from the outer limits of Municipal Corporation/ Municipal Committee etc. The purpose of this special category is to provide a concession to the children who have been studying all through their academic career, which is the minimum qualification for fulfilling the eligibility conditions, from a rural area to provide them a fair chance in competitive examinations like P. M. T. If the interpretation of the petitioner is to be accepted, it will amount to doing complete injustice to the language of the rule.

It is far from imagination that the authorities intended to make this special concession, to the candidates who might have studied all through or major part of their school education from urban area, but would have passed the final year of the school education or of the eligibility qualification from a rural area. This can never be the intention of the rule making authority and in fact it would frustrate the very purpose and object of such clause. The entire eligibility qualification, therefore, must be obtained by the student from rural area. The petitioner has, undisputedly, studied and passed her matriculation examination from Amritsar, admittedly an urban area, and there is no justification on record as to where she spend the period from 1990 to 1992, as she claims to have cleared her 12th standard in the rural area in the year 1994.

Having accepted the above interpre tation of this Clause in the brochure we hold that the petitioner having studied in urban area for part of her academic career, does not fulfil the conditions which could entitle her for seeking admission in this special category. She had to complete her education from 1st to Matric or in the present case from 1st to 12th class from the rural area, which, admittedly, she has not done. ''

The other factor that has weighed with us is that the course has already commenced in September, 1994 and the B. D. S. is a professional course. The petitioner cannot be permitted to join the course after the expiry of more than six months as on date. The Supreme Court after having laid down in detail the principles of admissions to these professional courses in Dr. Pradeep Jain and Others Vs. Union of India (UOI) and Others, , has reiterated in number of pronouncements that the candidate at belated stages should not be permitted to join the courses. The dates of admission to these professional courses should be adhered to strictly.

In view of our discussion above, we find no reason to direct the respondents to admit the petitioner to B. D. S. course in the Institute. Consequently, the writ petition is dismissed. There shall be no orders as to costs.

Petition dismissed.