Kochi: A writ petition was filed before the Kerala High Court challenging the Kerala Professional Colleges (prohibition of capitation fee, regulation of admission, fixation of non-exploitative fee and other measures to ensure equity and excellence in professional education) Act 2006.

The petition was filed by the executive trustees of Lisie Medical Educational Institution, Kochi. The petitioner sought to quash the law as it was against constitutional provisions. He also pleaded to permit the self-financing management association to go ahead with its entrance test and selection process for admission to professional colleges. The provisions of the Act violated Article 30 (1) (right of the minority to establish and administer educational institutions) and Article 19 (1) (g) (right to practise any profession or carry on any business or trade). In fact, the law took away the rights of the management of self-financing professional colleges. The petitioner pointed out that the Section, which defined the minority, was illegal. He said the Act said the seats reserved for the minority community should be filled up on the basis of in terse merit in the manner as may be prescribed from the rank list of the Commissioner for the Entrance Examination. Besides, the Act set certain criteria for recognising an institution as minority institution. These conditions were absurd. If such criteria were enforced, there could not be any minority institutions in the State. Besides, the Government had no power to recognise or determine the minority status of an institution. The National Commission for Minority Institution had the power to recognise a minority institution. If the Government were empowered to determine the status of a minority institution, Article 254 of the Constitution would attract it. It said that in the case the State laws were inconsistent with the Central law, the Central law would prevail. The petitioner also pointed out that the provisions in the Act were against the spirit of the Supreme Court ruling on the issue. The apex court had held that the Government could not take away the seats in the self-financing colleges. Besides, it had ruled that the Government could not implement reservation norms in the unaided professional colleges.

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