SRINIVASAN, J.

The pivotal issue in this case is whether after the coming into force of the All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987 (Act 52 of 1987), the State Government could withdraw the permission granted earlier to the Writ Petitioner to start a private Engineering College and the University of Madras could cancel or withhold affiliation to the college on the ground that the conditions imposed respectively by the State Government and the University for the grant have not been fulfilled. The other issues are only ancillary and answers thereto will depend on the answer to the above issue. For the sake of convenience, the parties are referred to by their rank in the writ petitions.

2. The writ petitioner is a registered Trust by name The Adhiyaman Educational and Research Institution. The petitioner applied to the Government of Tamil Nadu for permission to start a new self-financing private Engineering College without involving any financial commitment on the part of the Government. As a matter of policy, the Government in their G.O. Ms. No. 429, Education, Science and Technology Department, dated 17-4-1984 had permitted private managements to start new Engi