The Hindu : Front Page : Last year's quota and fee to stay

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Wednesday, Jul 19, 2006

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Last year's quota and fee to stay

Staff Reporter

High Court allows self-financing colleges to go ahead with their selection process

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday allowed the managements of self-financing professional colleges to go ahead with their selection process for admitting students to 50 per cent management seats and collect the fees fixed by the K.T. Thomas Committee.

The court, however, declined to stay the operation of the provisions of the Kerala Professional Colleges (Prohibition of Capitation Fees, Regulation of Admissions, Fixation of Non-Exploitative Fees and Other Measures to Ensure Equity and Excellence in Professional Education) Act, 2006, or the counselling process for admission to various professional colleges.

In an interim order, Justice S. Siri Jagan opined that "justice and balance of convenience dictate that for the academic year 2006-07, notwithstanding the fact that the impugned Act (new Act) came into force subsequent to the interim order dated May 29, 2006, of the Supreme Court of India, the said interim order shall govern the fee chargeable and the quota of seats".

The Supreme Court issued the interim order when writ petitions challenging the 2004 Act — the Kerala Professional Colleges (Prohibition of Capitation Fee and Procedure for Admission and Fixation of Fee) Act — came up before it.

According to that order, the managements and the Government were allotted seats in the ratio of 50:50. The apex court had also ordered that the managements could follow a uniform fee structure for both Government and management quota seats as recommended by the K.T. Thomas Committee.

Supreme Court order

The Supreme Court again on May 29, 2006, directed that for the academic year 2006-07, the fee to be charged and the quota of seats would be the same as in the previous academic year 2005-06. The apex court passed the order when the petitions challenging the 2004 Act was taken up for hearing.

The High Court was of the view that since the cases (before the apex court) had not been heard and disposed of even this year, "it became necessary to pass some order again for the subsequent year which happened to be 2006-07, which is the year to which the 2006 Act is sought to be made applicable."

(With the High Court passing the interim order, the students getting admission to professional courses in the management quota and merit quota in the self-financing colleges would have to pay the fees recommended by the K.T. Thomas Committee. The managements can also admit students from the entrance test conducted by the consortium of managements.)

The Judge pointed out that pursuant to the prospectus issued on June 5, 2006, a common entrance test had been conducted, results were published and managements and students of professional colleges had "arranged their affairs in accordance with the prospectus and interim orders of the Supreme Court even prior to the enactment of the new law.

Government plans appeal

Special Correspondent writes from Thiruvananthapuram:

The Government will go in appeal against the order of the Single Bench of the High Court.

The Government welcomed the fact that the court had not stayed the Act. But it wanted to enforce the Act this academic year itself. The order does not permit that. Education Minister M.A. Baby told presspersons that the Government would file an appeal before the Division Bench shortly. He said the court order would not disrupt the ongoing online counselling for the professional courses. There was no need for concern in this regard.

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