Admitted Students Without Recognition, Must Suffer Consequences: Madras High Court Imposes 5 Lakh Cost On College

Imposing a cost of five lakh rupees, Justice CV Karthikeyan said that the college should suffer the consequences of its actions and also left it open to the students to litigate against the college for the damages made.

"As repeatedly pointed out, the petitioner had admitted the students without recognition, without affiliation, without right and without authority. I really wonder as to how the petitioner had collected fees from the students with a clean conscience. The petitioner has to suffer the consequence of any order passed."

The college had approached the court for continuation of affiliation for the year 2021-2022 and to allow its students to write the semester examinations. The affiliation was later granted from the academic year 2022-2023 onwards.

The court noted that though the college was a body in suspended animation, it continued to admit students and claim fee irrespective of a notice issued by the Tamil Nadu Teachers Education University. The court added that the college, which was providing B.Ed courses and training future teachers had itself failed to follow ethics.

"The course under issue is B.Ed., Course. They train students to become teachers. For a student, who aspires to become a teacher, to uphold moral ethics should be the first quality. While that being so, the petitioner has fallen foul with that ethics."

The court also noted that the college had approached the court by playing sympathy in the name of the 100 students already studying in the college. It was also observed that the college was in blatant violation of Rules regarding affiliation by the Tamil Nadu Teachers Education University.

"Section 17(4) of the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993 very specifically states that if any degree is granted by a College, which had admitted students during the period when the College suffered from withdrawal of recognition or affiliation, then such a degree or certificate cannot be treated as a valid qualification for the purpose of employment under the Central Government or State Government or under any University, or any School, or any College or any Educational Body either aided by the Central Government or by the State Government. The petitioner must be aware of all these rules. If they are not aware, they have no right to function as an University. They had still admitted 100 students in the year 2021."

The court also observed that the college had merely tried to enrich itself by collecting money from the gullible students. 

The main aim of the petitioner was to collect money from gullible students. The bank account of the petitioner has been enriched by the fees paid by the students. Therefore, the petitioner is fighting for their own cause and certainly not for the cause of students. If they were interested, they would not have admitted the students in the first place.

However, considering the welfare of the students, the court requested the National Council For Teacher Education and Tamil Nadu Teachers Education University to consider transferring the students to other universities and to permit them to write examinations.

Case Title: Arulmigu Kalasalingam College of Education v. The Appeal Committee and others

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Mad) 119