( 1 ) ). THE present judgment in these Letters patent Appeals shall dispose of the above two groups of Letters Patent Appeals, which are between the same parties on the same subject-matter. The appeals have been preferred by the Gujarat Secondary Education Board against the order of the learned single Judges of this Court, whereby its disciplinary action against the two students, viz. , Chopra Sushant Shantichand and Chaudhary Sunny dharampalsingh, of cancelling their one academic examination for use of unfair means in the examination hall has been set aside.

( 2 ) ). The abovenamed students, whose Std. X examination conducted by the gujarat Secondary Education Board had been cancelled, approached this Court by preferring Special Civil Application Nos. 4045 of 1999 and 4686 of 1999 and a learned single Judge (Coram : M. R. Calla, J.), by judgment dated 21-7-1999 and 23-7-1999 [ reported in Sunny Dharampalsingh Chaudhary v. Gujarat Secondary Education Board. 2000 (1) GCD 446 : AIR 2000 Guj. 17], granted relief, directing declaration of their results for the 10th Standard examination. The learned single Judge held that the alleged admission of the students, who are minors, given in the examination hall, under fear and pressure, could not constitute evidence for taking action against them. The learned single judge also held that there was breach of principles of natural justice as the studnets did not get fair opportunity to show cause against the proposed action.

( 3 ) AGAINST the judgment of the learned single Judge (Coram : M. R. Calla, j.), two Appeals, being Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 1103 of 1999 and 1107 of 1999, came to be filed by the Board and in the said Letters Patent Appeals, a Division Bench of this Court (Coram : K. G. Balakrishnan, C. J. and M. S. Parikh, J.), by order dated 19-8-1999, granted opportunity to the Examination committee of the Board to hold a fresh enquiry into the allegation of use of unfair means by the students, and in the meanwhile, stayed the direction of the learned single Judge to declare the results.

( 4 ) PURSUANT to the second opportunity granted to the appellant-Board by the aforesaid Division Bench, the Examination Committee Issued fresh show cause notices to the two students, and holding a fresh enquiry, passed two impugned orders against the students, holding them guilty of adopting unfair means in the examination and cancelled their result of the said examination.

( 5 ) AGAINST the two separate decisions taken by the Examination Committee, the students again approached this Court by preferring Special Civil Application nos. 7129 of 1999 and 7366 of 1999, which were allowed by a common judgment dated 30-12-1999 passed by a learned single Judge (Coram : M. S. Shah, J. ). The learned single Judge granted relief to the students, holding that the evidence on record does not prove adoption of any unfair means of copying from a book by the students in the examination hall.

( 6 ) AGAINST the order of the learned single Judge (Coram : M. S. Shah, j.), two appeals, viz. , Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 6 of 2000 and 7 of 2000 have been preferred. It is in this manner four Letters Patent Appeals on the same subject-matter have come up for decision before us, which we are deciding by this common judgment.

( 7 ) THE only facts relevant to be stated are that in the S. S. C. Examination of March, 1999 on 27-3-1999, the students were giving examination on the subject of music. When a surprise check was made by the Squad in the examination hall, the two students were found in possession of book on music. from which they were copying. The booklets, from which the alleged copying was made in the examination hall, were seized from the students. The students in the examination hall gave a statement in writing, admitting the fact that each of them possessed a book on music and the same was seized when the squad Officer made surprise check. The students then retracted their admission after