Judgement

VENKATARAMA AYYAR J.: This is a petition under Art. 32 of the Constitution. There is at Indore a Medical College known as the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College run by the State of Madhya Bharat. The petitioner who is a resident of Delhi was admitted as a student of this college in July 1952, and is now studying in the third year class. M.B.B.S. Course. His complaint is that the rules in force in this institution discriminate in the matter of fees between students who are residents of Madhya Bharat and those who are not, and that the latter have to pay in addition to the tuition fees and charges payable by all the students a sum of Rs. 1,500 per annum as capitation fee, and that this is in contravention of Arts. 14 and 15(1) of the Constitution.

The petitioner accordingly prays that an appropriate writ might be issued prohibiting the respondent from collecting from him capitation fee for the current year, and directing a refund of Rs. 3,000 collected from him as capitation fee for the first two years.

2. The respondent contests the petition. In the affidavit filed on its behalf, it is stated that the institution in question had its origin in private enterprise, and was