Back
IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI
Prateek Jalan, J.
Siddharth Institute of Technology - Appellant
Versus
Pharmacy Council of India - Respondent
W.P.(C) 3196 of 2021
Decided On : 04-06-2021
Important Points
Subject
Education Law - Regulatory Compliance
Act Referred
Headnote
(B) Writ Jurisdiction - The court noted that the petitioner did not fulfill statutory requirements outlined in the PCI notices, leading to the dismissal of the petition as it was not a proper exercise of jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution. (Paras 17)
Facts of the case:
The petitioner applied for recognition of a B.Pharma course after obtaining the NOC on the last date for submission, but did not have prior consent of affiliation from the University, which was mandatory as per PCI notices. The application was submitted offline after the portal access was denied. (Paras 5, 6)
Findings of Court:
The court ruled that the applicant's failure to provide mandatory documents before the submission deadline justified the rejection of the application, confirming strict adherence to procedural requirements. (Paras 16)
Issues: The specific issues included whether the petitioner could be granted recognition despite not having all required documents and the interpretation of the PCI notices concerning those requirements. (Paras 13, 14)
Ratio Decidendi: The court underscored that the clear and unambiguous requirements necessitated both documents for submitting applications for new courses, and the petitioner’s arguments against these stipulations were not sufficient to override the mandatory nature of the requirements specified in the notices. (Paras 13, 16)
Result: The petition is therefore dismissed.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. recognition application for b.pharma course (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 2. arguments about necessity of documents (Para 8 , 10 , 11 , 12) |
| 3. court's analysis on document requirements (Para 13 , 14 , 15 , 16) |
| 4. dismissal of petition (Para 17 , 18) |
JUDGMENT
Prateek Jalan, J. (Oral)
The proceedings in the matter have been conducted through video conferencing.
1. The petitioner seeks a direction upon the respondent/Pharmacy Council of India ["PCI"] to process its application dated 10.02.2021 for grant of recognition to its Bachelor of Pharmacy ["B.Pharma"] course for the academic year 2021-22. The petitioner has made an alternative prayer for a direction upon the respondent to provide a link to the petitioner for submission of its online application seeking recognition of the said course.
2. The petitioner is an established institution running a Diploma in Pharmacy ["D.Pharma"] course since 2016-17. It desired, in addition, to establish a B.Pharma course from the academic year 2021-22.
3. The case of the petitioner is that, pursuant to a public notice dated 30.12.2020, the PCI opened its portal for submission of approval applications for the academic year 2021-22. Existing institutions were entitled to apply for continuation of approval, as well as for introduction of new courses. Under the aforesaid circular, the portal was to remain open during the period 04.01.2021 to 31.01.2021. By a subsequent notice dated 04.02.2021, the portal was opened once again, for the period from 08.02.2021 to 10.02.2021, as a last opportunity to existing institutions for submission of online applications.
4. The petitioner made its online application for renewal of permission for the D.Pharma course in January, 2020. However, at the relevant time, the petitioner did not possess a "No Objection Certificate" ["NOC"] from the State Government as required under the Notice dated 30.12.2020 for establishment of a new B.Pharma course. According to the petitioner, it was for this reason that it did not simultaneously make an application in respect of its proposed B.Pharma course.
5. According to the pleadings in the writ petition, the petitioner applied for the NOC to the Government of Rajasthan on 08.02.2021, and the State issued the NOC on 10.02.2021, being the last date for submission of applications on the PCI portal.
6. The petitioner claims thereafter to have made several attempts to log in to the portal in order to submit its application for the B.Pharma course, but was not given access. The petitioner has also placed on record an email dated 10.02.2021, sent to the Registrar of the PCI, with a request to open the portal to enable it to submit its application. The petitioner has stated that, in view of its inability to submit the online application, it submitted the application offline on 10.02.2021, alongwith the NOC granted by the State Government, and that the offline application was delivered to the PCI's office on 15.02.2021.
7. It is in these circumstances that the petitioner seeks a direction upon the respondent to process its application for grant of recognition of the B.Pharma course or, alternatively, an opportunity to submit the online application belatedly.
8. During the course of arguments, Mr. Amitesh Kumar, learned counsel for the petitioner, pointed out that in the Notice dated 30.12.2020, the PCI had stipulated the documents required for submission of an application for the B.Pharma course. Clause (3) of the said Notice, insofar as it relates to the B.Pharma course and Clause (6) thereof, is reproduced below: -
"3. The approval process for the academic year 2021-22 for introduction of new pharmacy course(s) by existing institutions the institution will have to apply on the portal along with requisite fees and submit the below mentioned documents mandatorily at the time of application for consideration of the application -
a) For B. Pharm course
i) Consent of affiliation of Examining Authority
ii) N
