The main legal point established in the judgment is that the power of the Government to issue first statutes in respect of transfer of private college teachers was exhausted by the issuance of statutes in 1976 and 1979, and that the 1990 statutes were without jurisdiction. Additionally, the court held that the period of one year mentioned in S.100(1) of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act was mandatory, and the statute issued after the expiry of this period was invalid.

Headnote:
private colleges - jurisdiction of Universities - Kerala, Calicut and Mahatma Gandhi Universities - S.57, S.59, S.60, S.62, S.100 - The court quashed and declared inoperative the Kerala University (Intra University Transfer of Teachers of Colleges under Corporate Management having colleges affiliated to the Kerala University) First Statutes, 1990, the Calicut University (Intra University Transfer of Teachers of Colleges under Corporate Managements having colleges affiliated to the University) First Statutes, 1990, and the Mahatma Gandhi University (Intra University Transfer of Teacher of Colleges under Corporate Managements having colleges affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University) First Statutes, 1990. The court held that the power of the Government to issue first statutes in respect of transfer of private college teachers was exhausted by the issuance of statutes in 1976 and 1979, and that the 1990 statutes were without jurisdiction. The court also held that the period of one year mentioned in S.100(1) of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act was mandatory, and the statute issued after the expiry of this period was invalid.
Fact of the Case:

The petitioner, a corporate management with colleges in Kerala, challenged the validity of statutes issued by the Government under the Kerala, Calicut, and Mahatma Gandhi University Acts, which regulated the transfer of private college teachers. The petitioner contended that the power to appoint and regulate the conditions of service of teachers was vested in the educational agency, and the Government's statutes were beyond their authority. The State argued that the statutes were within their power to regulate the conditions of service of private college teachers.
Finding of the Court:

The court held that the power of the Government to issue first statutes in respect of transfer of private college teachers was exhausted by the issuance of statutes in 1976 and 1979, and that the 1990 statutes were without jurisdiction. The court also held that the period of one year mentioned in S.100(1) of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act was mandatory, and the statute issued after the expiry of this period was invalid.
Issues: The issues included the validity of the statutes issued by the Government under the Kerala, Calicut, and Mahatma Gandhi University Acts, the power of the Government to regulate the transfer of private college teachers, and the interpretation of S.100(1) of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the power of the Government to issue first statutes in respect of transfer of private college teachers was exhausted by the issuance of statutes in 1976 and 1979, and that the 1990 statutes were without jurisdiction. The court also held that the period of one year mentioned in S.100(1) of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act was mandatory, and the statute issued after the expiry of this period was invalid.
Final Decision: The court quashed and declared inoperative the Kerala University (Intra University Transfer of Teachers of Colleges under Corporate Management having colleges affiliated to the Kerala University) First Statutes, 1990, the Calicut University (Intra University Transfer of Teachers of Colleges under Corporate Managements having colleges affiliated to the University) First Statutes, 1990, and the Mahatma Gandhi University (Intra University Transfer of Teacher of Colleges under Corporate Managements having colleges affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University) First Statutes, 1990. The judgment was to have only prospective operation, and any transfer orders issued in pursuance of the 1990 statutes were to be effective unless there were other reasons warranting cancellation or variation.

Judgment :-

Krishnamoorthy, J.

The private colleges in Kerala are within the area of operation and within the jurisdiction of three Universities, viz. Kerala, Calicut and Mahatma Gandhi Universities. The petitioner in O.P.No.9357 of 1990, who is the appellant in W.A.No. 380 of 1991, is a corporate management, as defined in the three Universities' Acts mentioned above. The petitioner is having different colleges in different parts of the State of Kerala, coming under the jurisdiction of the above three Universities.

2. In the original petition, which is the subject matter of the writ appeal, the prayer is to quash, by the issue of a writ of certiorari, the Kerala University (intra University transfer of teachers of colleges under corporate management having colleges affiliated to the Kerala University) First Statutes, 1990, Ext.P1, a similar First Statute issued in respect of the private teachers of the Calicut University, Ext.P2, and Ext.P3, a First Statute issued under the provisions of the Mahatma Gandhi University in regard to the intra University transfer of teachers of colleges coming under the corporate management having colleges affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University. All the three statutes are dated 25-8-1990. These three statutes were issued by the Government in exercise of their purported power under the relevant provisions of the three University Acts. These three statutes provide for the rules regarding the transfer of private college teachers from one college to another, within the jurisdiction of each University, in the colleges belonging to the corporate management. The petitioner is challenging the validity of these three first statutes.

3. The petitioner is challenging the validity of these statutes on the ground that under S.57 of the Kerala and Calicut University Acts and under S.59 of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act, the power to appoint teachers, including the principals of colleges, is vested in the educational agency. S.60 of the Kerala and Calicut University Acts and S.62 of the Mahatma Gandhi University Act provide that the conditions of service of teachers of private colleges, including their conditions relating to pay, pension, provident fund etc., shall be prescribed by the statutes. The statutes are to be passed by the Senate, so far as the Kerala and Calicut Universities are concerned, a condition of service, but only an incident of service, the Government is not empowered to issue a statute in respect of the matter of transfer of private college teachers. It was also contended that the right to appoint having been vested in the educational agency under the relevant provisions of the University Acts, transfer, which is a necessary non compliant of that power, cannot be interfered by the-Government and, accordingly, it is invalid. The petitioner further contends that the three statutes, Exts.P1 to P3, do not take into account the interest of the institution at all, but take into account only the interest of the teachers and, accordingly, it is liable to be set aside. It is also the case ofthe petitioner that the 1990 statutes are in conflict with the earlier statutes on the same subject and on that ground also, it is liable to be quashed. So far as Ext.P3 statute in respect of teachers in colleges coming under the Mahatma Gandhi University is concerned, an additional contention was raised by the petitioner that the first statutes were issued beyond the period of one year mentioned in S.100 of the relevant Act and, accordingly, it is with out jurisdiction.

4. The State has filed a detailed counter affidavit. It is alleged in the counter affidavit that under the relevant provisions in the Act, the Government have power to issue first statutes specifying the conditions of intra University transfer. They are also empowered to prescribe conditions of service of teachers of private colleges, by means of first statutes. The earlier statutes of 1976 and 1979 do not deal with the intra University transfe

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1992 Supreme(Ker) 107

Cases Referred (1)