Non-speaking orders and lack of opportunity to rectify deficiencies in the approval process for pharmacy colleges, and the need for compliance with statutory provisions under the Pharmacy Act, 1948.

JUDGMENT

Satish Chandra Sharma, C.J. (Oral)

CM APPL. 9255/2023

1. Exemption allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

2. The application stands disposed of.

LPA 141/2023

3. The present Letters Patent Appeal (LPA) is arising out of a common judgment passed in W.P.(C.) No.422/2023 titled Shri Girraj Maharaj College of Pharmacy Vs. Pharmacy Council of India, and other connected matters. The learned Single Judge has dealt with the facts of W.P.(C.) No.150/2023 titled Raghunathpur College of Pharmacy Vs. Pharmacy Council of India, and passed a common judgment. Therefore, as it is a common judgment, the facts dealt with by the learned Single Judge are being dealt with by this Court while deciding the present LPA.

4. The facts of the case reveal that the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) vide Resolutions dated 17.07.2019 and 09.09.2019 imposed a moratorium in respect of opening of new pharmacy colleges throughout the country for a period of five years beginning from academic session 2020-21 and five categories of institutions were exempted from the said moratorium. The Respondent in the present case, Raghunathpur College of Pharmacy as well as other colleges preferred writ petitions before the Karnataka and Chhattisgarh High Courts and judgment was delivered on 19.11.2020 and 22.04.2022 by the Karnataka and Chhattisgarh High Courts respectively and the moratorium was quashed by the High Courts.

5. A Special Leave Petition (SLP) was preferred in the matter, i.e. SLP (C.) No.4862/2022, and by an interim order dated 31.05.2022, the PCI was directed to inspect and process the applications of the colleges who were the writ petitioners before the High Court and, accordingly, the portal of the PCI was opened from 03.07.2022 to 15.07.2022. The last date was further extended till 07.09.2022 and the Raghunathpur College of Pharmacy as well as other institutions submitted an application along with requisite fees on 09.08.2022 to PCI for grant of approval to run the academic course D. Pharma for the academic year 2022-23. Raghunathpur College of Pharmacy was inspected by a team of two inspectors on 05.12.2022 & 17.12.2022. The Executive Committee of PCI in its 386th Meeting rejected the application on the ground that the institution has failed to provide facilities as per the statutory regulations. In all connected writ petitions, similar decision was taken by the Executive Committee of the PCI on 05.12.2022 (384th Meeting), 09.12.2022 (385th Meeting) and 17.12.2022 (386th Meeting).

6. The Colleges being aggrieved in the matter preferred number of writ petitions before this Court and all the writ petitions have been disposed of by the learned Single Judge. Before the learned Single Judge, it was contended that by non-speaking orders, their claim has been rejected. The reports prepared by the Inspectors were not furnished to the institutions; the deficiencies, if any, were not pointed out to the institutions; nor was any time granted to the institutions to cure the defect, if any.

7. The learned Single Judge has allowed the writ petitions and the operative paragraphs (paragraphs 12 to 15) of the order passed by the learned Single Judge read as under:

"12. Having heard the learned counsel appearing on behalf of the parties, this court finds that the prayer of the petitioners deserve consideration. A perusal of the decision taken in respective meetings nowhere indicates as to which institution is deficient of what requirement. The decision so taken by the PCI is completely nonspeaking. It was incumbent upon the PCI to have informed the institutions, with respect to the specific deficiencies, if any. Had it been done with opportunity to explain, those Institutions could have no grievances.

13. Having said so, this court finds it appropriate to dispose of all writ petitions with the following directions:

(i) Impugned decisions relating to petitioners are hereby set- aside.

(ii) PCI is directed to point out deficiencies with respect to each Institution