Admission of students in private technical institutions should be on the basis of merit determined in accordance with the provisions of sub-regulation (7) of regulation 8 of the All India Council for Technical Education (Norms and Guidelines for Fees and Guidelines for Admissions in Professional Colleges) Regulations, 1994.

JUDGMENT

Mohit Kumar Shah, J. - With the consent of the parties, both the aforesaid writ petitions have been taken up for hearing together since common questions of law are involved and are being disposed of by this common Judgment.

2. For the sake of convenience, the facts of the first case i.e. CWJC no. 23804 of 2018 (J. P. Institute Of Technology v. State of Bihar and others) are being referred to herein below.

FACTS OF FIRST CASE i.e CWJC NO. 23804 OF 2018 (J. P.Institute Of Technology v. State of Bihar and others)

3. The petitioner institute has approached this Court for directing the respondent authorities under the Science and Technology Department of the State Government as well as the State Board of Technical Education, Bihar, Patna (herein after referred to as the 'the Board') to take steps towards allowing registration of students admitted in the first semester and third semester in the diploma courses in different subjects during the Academic session 2018-19, who have been admitted on the basis of their participation in the Diploma Certificate Entrance Competitive Examination, 2018 conducted by the concerned authorities under the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board, Patna (hereinafter referred to as the BCECEB). The petitioner institution has further prayed to direct the respondent-authorities to allow the students admitted in the diploma course during the academic session 2018-19 to participate in the semester examinations to be conducted by the respondent Board.

4. The brief facts of the first case are that the petitioner institution is a recognized institution, offering diploma courses in different branches of Engineering and possesses necessary permission granted by the concerned authorities under the Science and Technology Department of the State Government to impart teaching in such courses and the students admitted in the College have been allowed to participate in the semester examinations conducted by the respondents Board/ BCECEB. It is submitted that pursuant to the Diploma Certificate Entrance Competitive Examination, 2018, conducted by the concerned authorities under the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board, Patna and on the basis of different rounds of counselling held by the said Board, names of students were recommended for admission in the petitioner college, however only 93 students out of a total of more than 500 names recommended for admission at the petitioner College, finally took admission in different diploma courses offered by the College during the Academic year 2018-19. Nonetheless, a large number of seats had remained vacant since the students whose names were recommended, did not finally take admissions at the College and as such the diploma courses offered in different subjects by the petitioner College became financially unviable, resulting in the Secretary of the College writing a letter dated 25.09.2018 to the concerned authorities under the Science and Technology department of the State Government to furnish a copy of the merit list so that the vacant seats for the Session 2018-19 could be filled up, inasmuch as the same procedure had been adopted in the earlier academic session 2017-18, however no action was taken by the State Government in this regard. The Principal of the petitioner College had then by a letter dated 11.10.2018, requested the respondent Board to allow submission of registration forms in favour of the students admitted at the College in the first and third semester diploma courses and along with the said letter, the prescribed fees was also furnished to the concerned authorities. Thereafter, a letter dated 02.11.2018 was issued by the concerned authorities under the State Board of Technical Education, Bihar, Patna, by which the principal of the petitioner College was directed to furnish admit orders with respect to the students admitted in different diploma courses at the petitioner College during the Session 2018-19, failing whi