P.V. Amarender Reddy vs The Principal Secretary on 4 December, 2025

Author: Surepalli Nanda

Bench: Surepalli Nanda

         HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE SUREPALLI NANDA


             WRIT PETITION No.18393 OF 2025

                      DATED: 04.12.2025

Between:

Sri P.V.Amarender Reddy                                ......Petitioner

And

The Principal Secretary, Higher Education and Others    ..Respondents


ORDER:

Heard Sri Sankalp Pissay, learned counsel on record

appearing on behalf of the petitioner, learned Assistant

Government Pleader for Higher Education, appearing on

behalf of respondent Nos.1 to 3 and Sri M.Phanindra

Bhargav, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

respondent Nos.4 & 5.

2. The petitioner approached this Court seeking the

prayer as under:

"...to issue a Writ, Order or direction in the nature of Writ of Mandamus, declaring that the action of Respondents more particularly of Respondents 1, 2 and

3 in not taking any action against Respondents 4 & 5 for highhandedly withholding the original certificates of Petitioners daughter by name Pargi Shriya Reddy as illegal and violative of my rights under Articles 14, 19, 21 and 21A of Constitution of India and consequently direct the Respondents 4 & 5 to issue immediately the original certificates of Petitioners daughter, by name

Pargi Shriya Reddy with College Admission No. 3000, Student ID.No.12879 and Roll No. 2558274050 and pass....".

3. The case of the petitioner in brief as per the

averments made by the petitioner in the affidavit filed by

the petitioner in support of the present writ petition is as

under:

The petitioner's daughter, Pargi Shriya Reddy, studied at

Alphores Girls Junior College, run by Respondents 4 and 5,

during the academic years 2023-25, stayed in the college hostel,

and completed her Intermediate education with 98% marks. The

petitioner had paid all fees for both years, including tuition,

books, dresses, and other charges, along with a refundable

caution deposit. Despite full payment, Respondents 4 and 5

allegedly demanded an additional ₹75,000 for issuing the Long

Memo, Bonafide Certificate, and Transfer Certificate, and sent an

undated, unsigned handwritten demand through registered post.

As the petitioner's daughter requires these documents to

participate in ongoing counseling and admission processes for

higher education, the petitioner informed the authorities that the

demand was illegal and submitted a complaint to the Board of

Intermediate and the Higher Education Department. The conduct

of Respondents 4 and 5 in withholding the certificates despite full

payment, and the inaction of Respondents 1, 2, and 3, violates

the fundamental rights of the petitioner's daughter under Articles

14, 19, 21, and 21-A of the Constitution of India, thereby risking

the loss of an academic year. Aggrieved by these actions, the

petitioner filed the present writ petition.

4. PERUSED THE RECORD

(A) This Court vide its order, dated 07.07.2025

passed in the present Writ Petition No.18393 of 2025,

observed on the proceeding sheet as under:-

Sri Sankalp Pissay, learned counsel for the petitioner, on instructions, would submit that respondent Nos.4 & 5 have returned most of the certificates to the petitioner except one certificate. However, he seeks time to get specific instructions.

Registry is directed to print Sri M.Phanindra Bhargav, learned counsel for respondents Nos.4 & 5 and list on 10.07.2025.

5. A Division Bench of this Court vide its judgment,

dated 24.01.2020 in W.P.No.21137 of 2019 dealing with

withholding of original academic qualification certificates

of the students observed at paragraph Nos. 29 and 30 as

under:-

"29. We are not expressing any opinion on the right of the 3rd respondent-College to recover amounts towards the entire course fee or the bond amount of Rs.3 lakhs from the

petitioner / her parent, but we hold that withholding her original academic qualification certificates, is impermissible in law.

30. Therefore, the Writ Petition is allowed; the action of the 3rd respondent-College in not returning the original academic qualification certificates of the petitioner who had discontinued study of M.B.B.S. I year course in the said college, is declared as illegal, arbitrary and violative of Article 14 and 300-A of the Constitution of India; Para no.7(iii) of G.O.MS.No.114, Health, Medical and Family Welfare (C.1) Department, dt.05.07.2017 is declared to be ultra vires the powers of the State Government under the Telangana Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Prohibition of Capitation Fee) Act, 1983 (Act 5 of 1983); and the 3rd respondent is forthwith directed to return the original academic qualification certificates of the petitioner to her. No costs."

The Division Bench very clearly observed that

withholding the original academic qualification

certificates of the students is impermissible in law.

6. The High Court of Madras in "K.Palanisamy Vs.

Correspondent, Vidya Vikash Matriculation School and

Others" of Madurai Bench in WP (MD) 20726 of 2019

decided on 17.10.2019 reported in MANU/TN/6538/2019,

held that certificates of students could not be held back by

educational institutions citing financial dues.

7. In the judgment of the High Court of Madras, Madurai Bench in S.Muthukamatchi vs. The Director of Technical Education, Anna University and others in WP(MD) No.14394 of 2012 decided on 18.12.2012 reported in MANU/TN/2168/2012, it is observed as under:

"I would not venture to get into that controversy, namely, whether the College is entitled to collect the balance of fees or not. The main grievance of the petitioner is about the certificates of her daughter. Those certificates are not like fixed deposit receipt on which, banks claim a general lien in terms of Section 171 of the Contract Act. Therefore, the certificates cannot be retained at any rate. Hence, this writ petition is allowed directing the fourth respondent to return all the original Certificates deposited by the petitioner forthwith."

8. In the judgment of the High Court of Delhi in Court on

its own Motion Vs. Directorate of Education & Ors. in WP

11.07.2019, it was held as under:-

"8. There are methods of recovering the outstanding school fees with the school. Even a suit could have been filed by Respondent No.2 upon the parents of the students, which has not been done so far. No such suit has been instituted by Respondent School for the recovery of outstanding fees.

9. In view of these facts, this Court is of the opinion that the School Leaving Certificates cannot be withheld by the respondents."

9. In S.Muthukamatch vs. The Director of Technical

Education, Anna University in W.P.(MD) NO.14394 of

2012, dated 18.12.2012, the Madras High Court at

Madurai Bench categorically held that certificates of

student is her/his property. College cannot detain the said

certificates at any rate. Even if the college has any

monetary claim, the rejection of the said certificates is not

the method by which the claim can be enforced. There is

no lien on the certificates of the students.

10. The Madras High Court in R.Pradeep Raj v.

Commissioner, the Directorate of Technical Education

reported in 2019 SCC OnLine Mad.9385, and this Court in

Kaluri Shiva Sai Teja vs. The State of Telangana in

W.P.No.2930 of 2022, dated 24.06.2022 and D.Vaishnavi

vs. State of Telangana, represented by its Prinicipal

Secretary Health Medical and Family Welfare, Hydeabad in

W.P.No.21137 of 2019, dated 24.01.2020 and also the

High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati in Andrha

Pradesh Private Unaided Schools Management Association

v. The State of Andhra Pradesh in W.P.No.9606 of 2021,

dated 27.10.2021 directed the college concerned

authorities to return the certificates and granted liberty to

the college to claim fee by availing legal remedies in

similar circumstances.

11. Based on the Division Bench Judgment of this Court

dated 24.01.2020 passed in W.P.No.21137 of 2019, this

Court had allowed W.P.No.34185 of 2023 vide its order

dated 03.06.2024 granting identical relief as granted in

W.P.No.21137 of 2019.

12. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

petitioner submits that as represented by the learned

counsel on 07.07.2025 when the matter came up for

consideration, the respondent Nos.4 & 5 have returned

most of the certificates to the petitioner's daughter except

one certificate, but however during the pendency of the

present writ petition, proceedings, dated 28.08.2025 had

been issued by the 5th respondent College informing the

petitioner's daughter that the consolidated marks

memo(Long Memo) is received from the Board of

Intermediate by the respondent No.5 and further, the

petitioner's daughter was called upon to clear fee i.e., due

amount of Rs.75,000/- to collect the said marks memo of

the petitioner's daughter herein.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION:

13. This Court opines that the 5th respondent cannot withhold

the petitioners' original certificate, i.e., consolidated marks

memo(Long Memo) under any pretext. There is no lien on the

certificate of the students since the certificate of the student is

his/her property. This Court opines that the right of students to

obtain their Certificates from one institution to join another

institution cannot be denied by the concerned authorities merely

because the tuition fee is due and if any amount is due from the

petitioners towards such fees, the proper course available to the

respondents is to initiate appropriate proceedings against the

petitioners for recovery before the competent Court and coercive

tactics cannot be adopted by the 5th respondent to make the

petitioners pay the tuition fee. This Court opines that there is no

justification on the part of the 5th respondent in withholding the

consolidated marks memo(Long Memo) of the petitioner's

daughter for non-payment of tuition fee. Therefore, duly taking

into consideration the view of the various High Courts on the

subject issue in various Judgments, referred to and extracted

above, this Court opines that petitioner is entitled for grant of

relief as prayed for in the present writ petition.

14. Taking into consideration :

(a) The aforesaid facts and circumstances of the

case,

(b) The observations on the subject issue

pertaining to withholding of original certificates of the

students, by the Authorities concerned in the Judgments

of the various High Courts (referred to and extracted

above),

(c) The orders of this Court dated 07.07.2025

passed in W.P.No.18393 of 2025 (referred to and

extracted above),

The Writ Petition is allowed as prayed for. The 5th

respondent is directed to issue original certificate of the

petitioner's daughter i.e., Intermediate consolidated

marks memo(Long Memo) to the petitioner's daughter

herein by duly taking into consideration the observations

in the various judgments (referred to and extracted

above) within a period of one (01) week from the date of

receipt of a copy of this order. However, there shall be no

order as to cost.

The miscellaneous applications, if any pending, shall stand

closed.

___________________________ MRS. JUSTICE SUREPALLI NANDA

Date: 04.12.2025 Note: Furnish C.C. by tomorrow b/o(ktm)