2012 Supreme(Raj) 2192
RAJASTHAN HIGH COURT AT JAIPUR BENCH
Ajay Rastogi, J.
Pawan Kumar Joshi & Ors. - Appellant
Versus
State of Rajasthan & Ors. - Respondent
S.B. Civil Writ Petition No.18153/2011.
Decided On : 25-10-2012
For the Petitioner:Mr. Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, Sr. Adv. with Mr. Gaurav Sharma and Mr. Ajay Gupta, Advocates.
For the Respondent:Mr. S.M. Mehta, Sr. Adv. with Ms. Pallavi Mehta, Mr. G.S. Bapna, Adv. Gen (Sr. Adv.) with Mr. Sarvesh Jain, Mr. M.I. Khan and Mr. Angad Mirdha, Advocates.
Headnote:The issues involved in this case were – Education fee, tuition fee, etc. charged by the Jhalawar Medical College which was run by a registered society under the relevant State Act. The medical college was entitled to allot 35 seats against the payment category. The society is independent to formulate its fee structure; however, it should be in subject to the guidelines laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court. It must be noted that the authority of the society to decide the tuition fee as recommended by the Bhargava Committee does not allow to ignore admission on merit.
JUDGMENT
1. - Since common question has been raised in the instant bunch of petitions by the petitioners who are students of Jhalawar Medical College, Jhalawar ("College") being run by Jhalawar Hospital & Medical College Society, Jhalawar ("Society") regarding fee structure for admission to MBBS course against payments seats, hence being decided by present order.
2. In order to appreciate the grievance of the petitioners it will be necessary to glance through a few relevant background facts which has been noticed from CWP-10323/2009 & 18153/2011.
3. The petitioners are students of College who took admission either in the year 2009-10 or 2010-11 against payment seats on the basis of their selection through Rajasthan Pre-Medical Test ("RPMT") conducted by respondent Rajasthan University of Health Sciences ("RUHS") adopting Ordinance-272 of Rajasthan University Ordinance and their primary grievance is regarding the fee structure laid down by the Society against payment seats and what is being pointed out by the petitioners is that since the College is being owned & controlled by the State Government, no distinction of fee could have been made regarding free & payment seats and such of the students who are granted admission against payment seats are also to be charged the fee prescribed by the College against free seats and such action of the College charging fee against payment seats is not justified & in conformity with the law laid down by Hon'ble Apex Court.
4. It has come on record that the State Government while holding six medical Government colleges vis-a-vis in Jaipur, Kota, Ajmer, Udaipur, Bikaner & Jodhpur, apart from private medical & dental colleges emerged with idea of opening one another medical college & hospital in Jhalawar in order to meet certain objects which reads ad infra:
"(a) to provide territory health centre to the people of Jhalawar, Rajasthan & also to other nearby places of western India;
(b) to provide educational institute for under-graduation in the field of medical science to the meritorious as well as less meritorious students;
(c) to avoid financial burden and make the society as self financing institution;
(d) thus, the institute will impart both medical education & health care services to the people."
5. It was also considered that the Government colleges being run by State since are facing lack of financial resources culminating into financial burden over the Government of Rajasthan and in order to meet out the financial burden & commitments, to establish new medical college it was decided to form society in the form of public private partnership model at Jhalawar but Jhalawar being remote as well as distant area on 02.05.2007 cabinet committee considered for establishing a medical college in Jhalawar and decided that private partner may be considered for which the Chief Minister was authorised to take its final decision and decided to form a society namely i.e. Jhalawar Hospital & Medical College Society, Jhalawar Rajasthan and that came to be registered under Raj. Registration of Societies Act,1958 ("Act,1958") on 08.08.2007 and the Government since willing to collaborate with private persons, in terms of clause-25 of the Rules & Regulations-cum-Memorandum of Association, it came to be appended with a right to collaborate with any of the private persons for bringing finances, expertise & efficiency in the management of hospital & medical college. Rules & Regulations of the society has been placed on record as Annx.R/1 in CWP-10323/2009 and for establishing in the form of public private partnership model on 28.12.2007 under the Chairmanship of Principal Secretary Medical & Health a meeting of the society took place based on the agenda of the Cabinet committee dated 31.08.2007, decided that affiliation application may be filed with RUHS and No Objection Certificate may also be applied for and simultaneously application may also be submitted seeking recognition from Medical Council of India, which was
Click Here to Read the rest of this document