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2018 Supreme(Guj) 1157
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
J.B. PARDIWALA, J.
Muskan Sunilkant Tiwari - Petitioner
Versus
State of Gujarat - Respondent
R/Special Civil Application No. 17426, 17428, 17454, 17455 of 2018
Decided On : 05-12-2018
For the Petitioner:Mr. Gautam M. Joshi With Mr. Vyom H. Shah, Advocate, Mr. A.D. Bhatt With Ms. Chandni S. Joshi, Advocate
For the Respondent: Ms. Manisha Lavkumar Shah, Government Pleader With M/S. Ronak Raval And Hardik Soni, AGPS., Mr. Km Antani
Headnote:
(A) Education – Admission in college – Cancellation – Only interpretation that can be given to term 'domicile' as contained in rules is residence of a particular kind – This residence, however, need not be continuous but it must be indefinite not purely fleeting – It is difficult to lay down an absolute definition of word 'domicile – Even State Government, while amending the rules and introducing concept of domicile, understood the same to be a resident within State of Gujarat. (Para 41)
(B) Education – Admission in college – Cancellation – Merely because a student shifts himself outside State of Gujarat for few years to pursue his studies in a school outside State of Gujarat as a boarding student and returns to State of his permanent residence and starts residing with his parents and also pursues further education (Standard-IX to XII), then in such circumstances the period for which he remained outside State of Gujarat his studies as a boarding student cannot be excluded while computing 'minimum continuous stay of ten years in Gujarat State – Materials on record indicate that parents of four writ-applicants are residing in the State of Gujarat past more than ten years – Domicile certificates which were already issued in favour of the writ-applicants should not have been cancelled – Decision of State Government to cancel domicile certificates of the writ-applicants is not correct – Writ-applications allowed. (Paras 47 to 49)
J.B. PARDIWALA, J.
1. Since the issues raised in all the captioned writ applications are the same, those were heard analogously and are being disposed of by this common judgment and order.
2. The four writ-applicants before this Court are students who secured admission in the First Year M.B.B.S. After two months of study their domicile certificate came to be cancelled on the ground that they had not studied within the State of Gujarat continuously for more than ten years. As the domicile certificate came to be cancelled, their admission in the respective medical college also came to be cancelled. In such circumstances, the four students are here before this Court with their respective writ-application.
3. For the sake of convenience, the Special Civil Application No.17426 of 2018 is treated as the lead matter. By this writ application, the writ-applicant has prayed for the following relief’s:
"(A) This Honourable Court may be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus or in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, direction or order quashing and setting aside the impugned order dated 27 October 2018 cancelling the Domicile Certificate and the consequential order of cancelling the admission of the petitioner to the GMERS Medical College, Gotri, Vadodara as well as the order passed by the Home Department on 5 November 2018 reaffirming the cancellation of the Domicile Certificate and be pleased to direct the respondents to permit the petitioner to continue her studies in the 1st MBBS at GMERS Medical College, Gotri, Vadodara as if the impugned order was never passed.
(B) Be pleased to grant such other and further relief as may deem just and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.
(C) During the admission, pendency and final disposal of the present petition, be pleased to direct the respondent College to permit the petitioner to continue her studies in the 1st MBBS without prejudice to the rights and contentions of all the sides and without creating any equity on the basis of such relief.
(D) Be pleased to award costs of this petition."
4. The case of the writ-applicant in her own words as pleaded in the writ-application is as under :
"2.1 Petitioner is permanent resident of the State of Gujarat and she is residing with her parents at the address mentioned in the course title of the petition. The said apartment is owned by patents of the petitioner. Petitioner’s father was working at Rapar, District Kachchh in a project by a company named Electro steel Casting Limited since November 2002. He was staying with the family at the accommodation provided by the company initially at the Rapar project. In 2005 he joined L & T Limited at Dahej District Bharuch. He was transferred to Jamnagar in 2015. All throughout since 2002 the petitioner’s father and the family has been residing in Gujarat. Copies of the certificates issued to the petitioner’s father are produced herewith and marked as Annexure A Collectively to the petition. As, the parental home of the petitioner’s father as well as mother is at Alwar, Rajasthan, she was born on 3 Match 1999 at Alwar, Rajasthan. Her mother had done to the parental house only for the purpose of delivery to Alwar. Her mother returned with the petitioner after only a month and thereafter, the petitioner was residing with her parents at the places of employment of other at Gujarat as stated above. As the father of the petitioner was being transferred from one place to another, her parents while staying in Gujarat, got the petitioner admitted at residential school at Bathinda, Punjab, namely Delhi Public School, where she studies up standard 8 without establishing any residence in the State of Punjab. After that, the petitioner got admission in Standard 9 at a school at Bharuch and studied up to standard 10. She changed the school for purusing studies for Standard 11 and
12. Copies of
