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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI
Prateek Jalan, J.
Yatendra Singh - Appellant
Versus
Indira Gandhi Institute of Physical Education and Sports Sciences - Respondent
W.P.(C) 849 of 2021 & CM Appl. 2219 of 2021 and W.P.(C) 861 of 2021 & CM Appl. 2265 of 2021
Decided On : 24-08-2021
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. institutional error in admission process. (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 2. arguments on equitable relief and admission errors. (Para 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16) |
| 3. court's reasoning on admission validity. (Para 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29) |
| 4. court's directive to permit continuation in course. (Para 30 , 31) |
JUDGMENT
Prateek Jalan, J. By way of these petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution, the petitioners seek directions upon the respondents to permit them to continue in the B.Sc. (Physical Education, Health Education and Sports) course ["the B.Sc. course"] at the respondent No. 1-Indira Gandhi Institute of Physical Education and Sports Sciences ["the Institute"]. As the writ petitions involve the same issue, they have been heard together and are disposed of by this common judgment. Facts
2. The Institute is affiliated to the respondent No. 2-University of Delhi ["the University"]. The petitioners applied for admission to the B.Sc. course in the Economically Weaker Section ["EWS"] category for the academic year 2020-2021. They participated in the University's entrance test conducted by the National Testing Agency. The results of the entrance test were published on 10.09.2020.
3. The Institute published its first admission list on 07.11.2020, wherein the petitioners were shown as having been selected for admission. In the list pertaining to the EWS category, Vivek Vats1 ["VV"] is shown at Serial No. 6 with rank 95, and Yatendra Singh2 ["YS"] is shown at Serial No. 10 with rank 111. The petitioners submitted the documents required in terms of the notice dated 07.11.2020 and paid their fees. They also started attending classes online. Selected screenshots have been placed on record in support of this contention.
4. From the documents placed on record by the respondents, it appears that the respondents later discovered some error in the merit list published by the Institute. A meeting of the University's Admission Committee ["the Admission Committee"] was held on 05.12.2020, in which it was decided as follows:
1 The petitioner in W.P.(C) 861/2021
2 The petitioner in W.P.(C) 849/2021
"5. Cancellation of erroneous admission of Course BSc PE, HE & S
The Admission Committee was informed that IGIPESS had advertently committed an error while publishing the first Admission List. As a result, some students were wrongly admitted. The institute had requested cancelling the admissions of such applicants.
The Admission Committee recommended that the admission of these applicants be cancelled based on the recommendation of IGIPESS and IGIPESS to come out with a correct admission list."
5. Pursuant to this decision, on 24.12.2020, the Institute issued an "Admission Notice" which stated as follows:
"ADMISSION NOTICE
B.SC (PE, HE & S) - 2020=21
The Applicants selected in the Revised First Admission List (according to category) for Admission to B.Sc (PE, HE & S) course 2020-21 are required to deposit their admission fees 26rd & 27th December, 2020 (till 02.00 PM) through the admission Portal of University of Delhi.
The applicant shall be required to produce the following documents in original with two-attested photocopies (when college is offline / college is open for students)
xxxx xxxx xxxx
Note : 1. Candidates (in this list) who have submitted their admission fee in the prior list Published on 12.11.2020, need not to submit the admission fee again. (Next List will be displayed on 28/12/2020)
2. In case, any documents are found false at the time of physical verification of certificate, the admission is liable to be cancelled"
6. The admission list published along with this notice did not contain the names of the petitioners. According to the petitioners, they became aware of their removal from the Institute when their names did not appear in a section-wise list of students which was published on 04.01.2021. YS received no intimation of the publication of this revis
In cases of erroneous admissions, the institution cannot cancel admissions after the course has started if the candidates were not at fault, and the principle of estoppel applies.
Admissions should not be cancelled without any wrongdoing or default on the part of the candidate, and the responsibility of the institution in granting admissions is emphasized.
The court emphasized that the blame for wrongful admission lies more upon the institution than the candidates and that the respondents cannot discriminate between similarly situated students in the s....
Merit and entitlement for seat allocation in educational institutions depend on adherence to procedural norms, alongside validation of certificates; mere claims of wrongdoing by the institution do no....
The court emphasized the need for administrative flexibility in educational admissions, stating a minor error should not lead to denial of opportunities. Timely rectification of the error weighed hea....
Grant of admission - In exceptional cases, admission may be granted to a meritorious candidate even one month after the cut-off date for medical admissions.
A university cannot deny a student the right to continue studies or withhold examination results based on procedural failures, especially after allowing the student to attend classes and take exams.
Eligibility criteria for academic admissions cannot be altered after the admission process has commenced, ensuring fairness in selection.
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