Dr. Ganesh Roy Degree College vs The State Of Bihar
2021 Latest Caselaw 68 Patna

          IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                  Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.20759 of 2019
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Dr. Ganesh Roy Degree College Sitamarhi, Situated at Punaura, P.S.- Sitamarhi, District-Sitamarhi, through the Secretary of the Managing Committee, namely, Dr. Ganesh Roy @ Ganesh Roy, aged about 64 years (Male), Son of Ramdeo Roy, Resident of Arvindalay, Lakshmana Nagar, Ward No. 16, Bhabdepur, Sitamarhi Bazar, P.S. - Sitamarhi, District - Sitamarhi.

... ... Petitioner/s Versus

1. The State of Bihar through the Principal Secretary, Education Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.

2. The Principal Secretary, Education Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.

3. The Deputy Secretary, Education Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.

4. The Director, Higher Education, Education Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.

5. Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, through its Vice-

Chancellor, Muzaffarpur.

6. The Vice-Chancellor, Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur.

7. The Registrar, Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur.

8. The Controller of Examination, Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur.

... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Ashhar Mustafa, Advocate For the State : Mr. Shashi Shekhar Tiwary, Advocate For the University : Mr. Nikhil Kumar Agrawal, Advocate ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHUTOSH KUMAR ORAL JUDGMENT Date : 07-01-2021

Heard Mr. Ashhar Mustafa, learned Advocate for

the petitioner/college, Mr. Shashi Shekhar Tiwary, learned Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

counsel for the State and Mr. Nikhil Kumar Agrawal, learned

Advocate for the respondent/University.

2. This writ petition has been filed for setting-

aside the communication contained in Memo No. 14/AF-

11/2015 1232, dated 15.07.2019, issued by the Deputy

Secretary, Education Department, Govt. of Bihar, Patna,

whereby, the Registrar of Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar

Bihar University (in short the University) has been informed

that the proposal sent to the government by the University

for grant of affiliation to the petitioner/college has been

rejected on account of non-fulfillment of the requirements of

ownership and possession of the land as prescribed in

Statute No. 1098, dated 19.04.1986, and Letter No. 3196,

dated 14.12.2017, issued by the Secretariat of the Hon'ble

Governor.

3. A further request has been made for directing

the extension of affiliation of the petitioner/college from

Sessions 2012-2013 to 2018-2019 and for Session 2019-

2020 onwards in accordance with the proposals sent by the

respondent/University to the Education Department of the Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

government.

4. Without referring to the details adverted to in

the present petition, the controversy and the reason for the

government to reject the recommendation of affiliation of the

petitioner/college is that it does not have the requisite area

of land as required under the Statute for running a Degree

college.

5. Mr. Mustafa, learned Advocate for the

petitioner/college has drawn the attention of this Court to

the fact that initially, with the efforts of Dr. Ganesh Roy, an

academician of the area, a college was started under the

name of "Choudhary Charan Ganesh Roy College,

Sitamarhi". He being the founder and the Secretary of the

Managing Committee of the college, donated land to the

college. The college, after being established in the year

1989-1990 was administered properly till 1997. Thereafter,

on the rejection of the recommendation of the Bihar

Intermediate Education Council by the government, the

affiliation of the college with the University was not

extended. After a lapse of about 4 to 5 years, the Managing Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

Committee of the college unanimously resolved to change

the name of the earlier entity, viz., "Choudhary Charan

Ganesh Roy College, Sitamarhi", as "Dr. Ganesh Roy Degree

College, Sitamarhi". It was also resolved that with the

change of the name of the college, all the properties of the

erstwhile Choudhary Charan Ganesh Roy College, Sitamarhi

would vest in Dr. Ganesh Roy Degree College, Sitamarhi.

6. It has also been brought to the notice of this

Court that in the inspection, which was conducted for grant

of permanent affiliation, it was found that the college in

question had all the infrastructure and wherewithals for

being recommended for permanent affiliation.

7. The inspection report was approved by the

Affiliation Committee as well as by the Academic Council and

Syndicate of the University. However, such acceptance of

the inspection report and the recommendation of the

University never reached the government.

8. The petitioner/college, thereafter, approached

this Court for the needful vide C.W.J.C. No. 9318 of 2012.

In the aforesaid writ petition, a direction was issued to the Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

University to send the approval of the Senate for grant of

permanent affiliation to the State Government within a

period of two weeks and the State Government was also, in

turn, directed to take a decision on such recommendation

within a further period of two months thereafter.

9. On such recommendation having been

forwarded to the government, affiliation to the college was

granted but only for the Session 2011-2012. Thereafter,

again, a new committee was constituted by the University

for the inspection of the college, which, again, recommended

for extension of affiliation for Sessions 2017-2018 onwards.

This inspection report also was approved by the Academic

Council and the Syndicate and such approval was sent to the

government for the needful.

10. It was then, it has been argued, that the

government took the plea that the Managing Committee of

the erstwhile college may have taken a resolution for vesting

the land of the college in the name of new college, viz., "Dr.

Ganesh Roy Degree College, Sitamarhi", but such resolution

was not converted into reality as in the revenue records, the Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

new college is not shown to possess the lands which got

vested in it after the change in the name of the college.

11. Learned counsel for the petitioner has

submitted that for all practical purposes, except for the

change in the name of the college, everything remains the

same. The new college has the same Managing Committee

and in view of the specific resolution of the Managing

Committee of change in the name of the college and

consequent vesting of the entire property belonging to that

college to the present college, the objection taken by the

government is not desirable.

12. In support of the aforesaid contention,

learned counsel for the petitioner/college has further

submitted that at one point of time, the government did not

object to such vesting of land in the college and granted

affiliation for a particular session. The government, it has

been urged, therefore, was not required to take this plea

now, when everything appears to have settled.

13. As opposed to the aforesaid contention, the

response of the State Government is that the proposal of the Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

University and the documents enclosed thereto, on being

examined by the Education Department, was found to be

deficient. The documents relating to land did not show that

it was in the name of the petitioner/college. The State

Government, therefore, vide a communication dated

28.12.2018 asked the University to explain the aforesaid

circumstance.

14. In response to the aforesaid communication,

a fresh inspection report was sent to the government, which

indicated that the land said to belong to the college is in the

name of Chaudhary Charan Ganesh Roy College, Sitamarhi

and not in the name of the petitioner/college.

15. In view of the Statute regarding affiliation, if

the requisite of land is not owned and possessed by the

petitioner/college, the State Government had no other option

but to reject the recommendation of affiliation.

16. The resolution of the Managing Committee

of the erstwhile college was not translated into reality even

over a period of eight years and the land could not be

recorded in the name of the petitioner/college in the revenue Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

records. Precisely for this reason, it has been stated on

behalf of the State that the request of the University and of

the petitioner/college has been rejected.

17. Learned counsel for the petitioner/college

has submitted that this is a rather technical objection, put up

only for the purposes of defeating the claims of the college,

especially in view of the fact that such transfer of land was

accepted by the State Government in granting affiliation to

the college for a particular session.

18. In any view of the matter, the documents

furnished to the State Government do not depict that the

land which belonged to Chaudhary Charan Ganesh Roy

College, Sitamarhi has changed and now is recorded in the

name of the petitioner/college, viz., Dr. Ganesh Roy Degree

College, Sitamarhi. Thus, the requirement under the Statute

governing the affiliation of colleges is not fulfilled and,

therefore, prima facie, no objection could be raised on the

decision of the government.

19. However, from the inspection report, which

was placed before the University and which was Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

communicated to the State Government, it is very clear that

the Committee recommended for extension of affiliation from

Sessions 2012-2013 to 2018-19 and permanent affiliation

from Session 2019-2020, provided the requirement under

the Statute of the land belonging to the petitioner/college

was fulfilled.

20. This, in the opinion of this Court, is a

recommendation, which cannot be faulted with.

21. The counsel for the State also submits that

the State would re-visit the recommendation of the

University, provided the land which is said to belong to the

petitioner/college stands recorded in the revenue records in

the name of the petitioner/college.

22. This Court, therefore, directs that in the

event of the land belonging to the petitioner/college being

mutated in the name of the petitioner/college, the

government shall re-visit such recommendation and take a

decision forthwith and communicate the same to the

University as also to the petitioner/college. It is expected

that no time would be lost in reviewing the decision, if Patna High Court CWJC No.20759 of 2019 dt.07-01-2021

necessary changes are made in the land records, as any

delay on the part of the government would disturb the

schedule of the session which would be disadvantageous to

the students.

23. Needless to state that if this requirement is

fulfilled, the State Government would look at the other

requirements also and if the petitioner/college fulfills all

other requirements, then necessary decision shall be taken in

accordance with law.

24. It is also expected that the revenue

authorities would respond to the request of the

petitioner/college in right earnest in mutating the land in

question in the name of the petitioner/college.

25. With the aforesaid observation/direction, the

writ petition stands disposed off.

(Ashutosh Kumar, J) Praveen-II/-

AFR/NAFR                       NAFR
CAV DATE                       N/A
Uploading Date                 08.01.2021
Transmission Date              N/A