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Judgment
A.M. Shaffique, J.—The petitioners seek the following reliefs:
i) issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, direction or order, directing the respondents to extend to the petitioners the benefit of exemption from appearing for the first and second semester examinations (of the regular stream) in the B.Tech Part-time course before restructure (in 2010) which is extended to the students of B.Tech Part-time courses who joined the courses after 2010 and to Lateral Entry students in the B.Tech regular courses;
ii) declare that the discrimination made between the students of the Part-time B.Tech who have joined before 2010 and those in Part-time B.Tech Course who joined after 2010 as well those who obtained Lateral Entry in the B.Tech Regular course by providing the benefit of exemption from writing the first and second semester examinations in the regular courses to the latter two classes while denying the same to the former class is unreasonable, unfair, arbitrary and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution.
The facts involved in the writ petition disclose that the petitioners are final semester students of T.K.M. College of Engineering, Kollam doing their B.Tech (part time) course in Mechanical Engineering. They joined the college during the academic year 2008-09. The part time course is intended for Diploma Holders in various Engineering branches. The Diploma holders are also permitted to join for regular B.Tech course with the benefit of lateral entry that is to join the course from the third semester onwards. The petitioners are aggrieved by the decision of the University in the discrimination shown between the part time students and regular B.Tech students. The part time students have to undergo the entire semester examinations from the first semester onwards whereas those Diploma holders who undertake regular B.Tech Course through lateral entry are exempted from appearing for the first and 2nd semester examinations. Hence the petitioners seek for directions as above.
It is contended that it is based on AICTE guidelines that Diploma Holders are permitted lateral entry in the 2nd year/3rd semester level in the regular B.Tech course. Ext. P1 dated 11/07/1992 is the relevant guidelines.
Certain diploma holders doing part time B.Tech course had approached this Court earlier to have the same benefits for part time B.Tech Course as well. By judgment in O.P. Nos. 78/2003 and 1445/2003, this Court directed the Government to grant equal benefit to Diploma holders admitted in full time and part time B.Tech Courses. Ext. P2 is the said judgment. This Court further observed that it is for AICTE and Universities to grant approval for exemption from writing the first and second semester examinations.
However, no action was taken with reference to the said directions issued by this Court. Later, by Ext. P3 order dated 22/05/2008, the University of Kerala accepted lateral entry students from clearing the semesters 1 and 2. Ext. P3 is the said notification. According to the petitioners, the persons who undertake part time course as well as those who take regular course cannot be differentiated as they form a class by themselves and the University is bound to provide exemption from writing the first and 2nd semester examinations to the part time diploma holders as well.
It is contended that the syllabus, examination, valuation for lateral entry of B.Tech students and part-time B.Tech students are one and the same and therefore all benefits given to those who have lateral entry in regular B.Tech course cannot be discriminated from those who were doing part time course. It is contended that as per Ext. P1 guidelines issued by AICTE a diploma holder in Engineering who had obtained the said degree through a three year course can be considered academically equal and having passed the 1st and 2nd semester of the four year engineering degree. When benefits are given to diploma holders admitted in the regular course there is no reason to deny the same to the diploma holders admitted in part time course prior to 2010. Several representations submitted by the petitioners did not yield any result and ultimately Academic Council in Board of Studies of the University had confirmed that the said benefit would be granted to those students who had joined after 06/08/2010. The revised regulation is produced as Ext. P13 and P14 which inter alia provides exemption from 1st and 2nd semester examination of the regular course to part time course students. It is the contention of the petitioners that they have made all the representations over a period of time and only the students who joins after 2010 are entitled to get the aforesaid exemption. This according to the petitioner amounts to gross discrimination and is arbitrary.
Counter affidavit is filed by respondents 1 and 2 inter alia contending that there is substantial difference between the students who joined the part time course and those who undertake the regular course through lateral entry. It is contended that only those candidates who obtained 60% marks in the Diploma examination are permitted to join B.Tech course under lateral entry scheme. They have to clear an entrance examination at the State level on the selected subjects of the 1st year B.Tech course whereas part time B.Tech courses are offered to students possessing diploma with a stipulation that they should be in permanent employment at the time of applying for admission to the course. Those students can also avail of the admission under the lateral entry scheme provided they are eligible as per the scheme. Further it is contended that initially even the diploma holders admitted under the lateral entry scheme were required to write remedial papers for the 1st and 2nd semesters before they register for their 7th semester examination. However, relaxation has been granted to the same by the University in terms of Ext. R1(b) order dated 22/5/2008. It is pointed out that both the courses are totally different. It is further contended that when representations were made by similarly placed persons, the Vice Chancellor directed the matter to be placed before the Board of Studies in Engineering. Though the representations of the part time B.Tech students were rejected it was further recommended to restructure the part time B.Tech course in tune with the lateral entry in regular course. Ext. R1(c) is the said proceedings dated 29/5/2009 which was recommended by the Academic council. The revised regulations and scheme of B.Tech part time degree course was implemented from the Academic Year 2010-2011 onwards as per order dated 06/08/2010 which is produced as Ext. R1(d). According to the University the restructured scheme cannot be made applicable to the petitioners and therefore the relief sought for cannot be granted.
Reply affidavit is filed by the petitioners further producing Ext. P15 and P16 in order to contend that they had undertaken the entire course as that of the students in respect of the lateral entry.
The short question to be considered in the present writ petition is whether the University was justified in confining the benefit granted to part-time B.Tech students in terms of Exts. P13 and P14 to those students who joined after 2010.
In order to understand as to whether the orders at Exts. P13 and P14 had resulted in discrimination it has to be verified whether persons who had joined the part time B.Tech course and persons who had joined the regular B.Tech course through lateral entry fall within the same class by itself. Going by the qualification prescribed for admission apparently both these categories are to have Diploma in Engineering course. But the qualification prescribed with reference to other parameters are totally different. In respect of part-time course, the candidate should be permanently employed in an establishment. For lateral entry in the regular course a minimum cut off marks is prescribed for the candidates and they have to undergo a written test before being selected. Therefore as on the date when Ext. P13 and P14 orders were passed, they were treated separately and as a separate class and could not have been treated as a class by itself. The basis for differentiation is well stated as evident from Ext. R1(a). Then the question to be considered is whether there is any justification in giving the exemption for part time course studies only from 2010 onwards. As per Ext. R1(d) (Ext. P13) notification the University has, approved revised Regulations and Scheme of the re-structured B.Tech (part-time) Degree course. The decision was taken only when the Academic Council has approved the revised regulations, on 25/05/2010. It is therefore made clear that the Regulations would be applicable only from the academic year 2010-2011. It is true that if a decision was taken earlier by the University necessarily some more persons would have obtained the benefit. But the fact remains that when the petitioners joined the part time course they were under obligation to write the first and second semester examination also. The benefit granted to the part time course students from 2010 onwards cannot have any retrospective application unless it is stated so. True that the petitioners are aggrieved by the action taken of the University in limiting the exemption prospectively. But that does not mean that this Court can direct the University to provide such exemption for the persons who had already undergone the studies, and who had joined the course when the 2010 Regulations was not in force.
Hence I do not think that the petitioners are entitled for any relief in the present writ petition and hence the same is dismissed.