Shailendra Kumar Katare vs The State Of Madhya Pradesh
2022 Latest Caselaw 5801 MP

                                      1
              IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH
                           AT JABALPUR
                                  BEFORE
                     HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE SHEEL NAGU
                                     &
                  HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE MANINDER S BHATTI
                             ON THE 21st OF APRIL, 2022

                      WRIT PETITION No. 20466 of 2020

         Between:-
         SHAILENDRA KUMAR KATARE S/O LATE SHRI
         RAMADHAR KATARE , AGED ABOUT 35 YEARS,
         OCCUPATION: DOCTOR R/O 486/B, AB-2, NEW
         JAGDAMBA COLONY, BEHIND KARASHI UPAJ
         MANDI, MAGARAJA AGRASEN WARD NO. 35,
         DISTT. JABALPUR-M.P.

                                                                   .....PETITIONER
         (BY SHRI MUKESH KUMAR MISHRA, ADVOCATE)

         AND

1.       THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH THROUGH THE
         SECRETARY,
         MEDICAL EDUCATION, BHOPAL-M.P.

2.       DEAN NETAJI SUBHASH CHANDRA BOSE
         MEDICAL    COLLEGE JABALPUR (MADHYA
         PRADESH)

3.       HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT M.P.T. SPORTS
         PHYSIOTHERAPY, NETAJI SUBHASH CHANDRA
         BOSE MEDICAL COLLEGE JABALPUR (MADHYA
         PRADESH)

                                                                .....RESPONDENTS
         (BY SHRI SWAPNIL GANGULY, DEPUTY ADVOCATE GENERAL FOR
         RESPONDENTS/STATE)

      T h is petition coming on for admision this day, Hon'ble Shri Justice
Maninder S. Bhatti passed the following:
                                       ORDER

In the instant writ petition preferred under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has prayed for following reliefs :

"(i) This Hon'ble Court be pleased to quash the impugned letter/order No./Ortho/Para/BPT/20/470, dated 26-11-2020 (Annexure-P/1) issued/passed by respondent No.2, in the interest of justice.

(ii) This Hon'ble Court be pleased to direct the respondents No.2 and 3 to exempt the petitionerr from payment of tuition fees and to return the fees amount of Rs.58000/- paid by the petitioner to them, previously.

(iii) Any other relief which this Hon'ble Court deems fit and proper in view of the facts and circumstances of the case may kindly be granted to the petitioner."

2. The averments made in the petition reveal that the mother of the

petitioner, since opted for family planing was provided with a Green Card which is brought on record as Annexure-P/3 and thus, by virtue of Circular of the State Government, dated 6-7-1990 the petitioner was entitled for exemption from payment of tuition fees to sons.

3. It is submitted in the petition that petitioner is prosecuting M.P.T. Sports Physiotherapy (MPT) Course from Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Medical College, Jabalpur where he applied for exemption from payment of tuition fees. It is putforth that earlier he filed a writ petition before this Court forming the subject- matter of W.P. No.11269/2020 which was disposed of with a direction to respondents to decide petitioner's representation and pursuant to which representation of the petitioner was considered and rejected vide order dated 26- 11-2020 which is being sought to be impugned in the present petition.

4. Learned counsel for petitioner submits that the Circular of the State Government issued by the Public Health and Family Welfare Department, Bhopal dated 6-7-1990 makes it unequivocally clear that children of Green Card holders will be exempted from payment of tuition fees to Government Medical/Engineering/Polytechnic Colleges as well as Industrial Training Institutes. Therefore, since the mother of the petitioner is Green Card holder, he is entitled for grant of exemption from payment of tuition fees and hence, the petitioner has assailed the order of rejection on the ground that the respondent No.2 being a Govt. College cannot escape from its liability to extend the benefit of exemption from payment of tuition fees to the petitioner. Thus, it is prayed that the order impugned dated 26-11-2020 be quashed and respondents be directed to exempt the petitioner from payment of tuition fees and further to return of tuition fees amount of Rs.58000/-, which was already deposited by the petitioner.

5. Per contra, learned counsel for respondents submits that the petition suffers from suppression of fact, inasmuch as the petitioner has not disclosed the

fact that respondent No.2 is an Autonomous body and MPT Course is self- finance paramedical course. In the brochure of the said Course for the year 2019- 20 there is specific ineligibility condition to the effect that on the basis of Green Card there will be no exemption from payment of tuition fees.

6. Learned counsel for respondents further submits that candidates who were desirous to undertake Self Finance Paramedical Course, were required to swear in an affidavit to the effect that candidate will not claim any exemption from payment of tuition fees on the basis of Green Card. In the present case, the petitioner sworn in an affidavit which has been brought on record as Annexure-

R/2. Further, there are two more circulars of the State Government dated 17-10- 2007 and 03-7-2009 which provide benefit of exemption from payment of tuition fees on the basis of Green Card can only be given as one time benefit, meaning thereby, it will be admissible only for Government, Autonomous Government Medical College, Engineering College, Polytechnic College & Industrial Training Institute. Since the petitioner herein was already conferred this benefit when he was prosecuting his Bachelor of Physiotherapy (BPT) which reflects from perusal of Annexure-R/4, hence he cannot avail same benefit twice. Therefore, the writ petitioner is hit by the principle of Promissory Estoppel . Thus, now the petitioner cannot take u-turn assailing action of respondents, for which benefit of exemption from payment of tuition fees has been declined.

7. Learned counsel for respondents placed reliance on the judgments of the Apex Court rendered in the cases of U.P. Awas Evam Vikas Parishad and others vs. Rajendra Bahadur Shrivastava and another, 1995 Supp (4) SCC 76 and State of Karnataka vs. C.K. Pattamashetty and another, (2004) 6 SCC 685.

8. We have heard learned counsel for parties and bestowed our anxious consideration to their respective arguments.

9. In our considered view, this is a case where petitioner, in fact, is guilty of suppression of fact. He has not disclosed in the writ petition that pursuant to the brochure pertaining to the course which he is prosecuting at present, he sworn in an affidavit furnishing an unequivocal undertaking to the effect that he will not claim any benefit on the basis of Green Card. This affidavit has not

been denied by petitioner even after filing rejoinder.

10. Apparently, while taking admission in MPT Course with open eyes the petitioner was well aware that on the basis of Green Card there will not be any exemption from payment of tuition fees and without any demur or protest the petitioner submitted an affidavit which is contained in Annexure-R/2 furnishing an undertaking to the effect that he would not claim exemption from payment of tuition fees.

11. Regard being had to the aforesaid submission, we are of the considered opinion, that the petitioner cannot avail benefit of exemption from payment of tuition fees on the basis of Green Card. Reliance placed upon by learned counsel for petitioner on the decisions appended as Annexure-P/7 and Annexure-P/8 to the writ petition, is also misconceived, inasmuch as in both these decisions of the Co-ordinate Bench, question pertaining to an undertaking was not in issue, therefore, the same have no applicability, so far as case of the petitioner is concerned.

12. Moreover, since petitioner has already availed this benefit in BPT Course once, which has also not been disputed by petitioner, in our considered view, in the light of Circular dated 17-10-2007, he is estopped from raising any claim contrary to the undertaking.

13. Thus, in view of aforesaid discussion, the writ petition fails and the same is hereby dismissed. No order as to costs.

     (SHEEL NAGU)                                                                                                        (MANINDER S BHATTI)
        JUDGE                                                                                                                  JUDGE
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                         Digitally signed by AJAY KUMAR CHATURVEDI

DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH, ou=HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH, postalCode=482001,

AJAY KUMAR CHATURVEDI st=Madhya Pradesh, 2.5.4.20=3796e6c1d0b4cce5f8c8561cdbb3a238176d46898b715c1662ee8b05eed57eb0, pseudonym=7812D41F1F531DBC0B9219827A0B19AAEAA0618E, serialNumber=C8EAAC30EFBB2F0C7E41AE53BEEC562C515B38978E4597AA3C73D309F0F1FBB9, cn=AJAY KUMAR CHATURVEDI Date: 2022.04.26 17:39:11 +05'30'