ORDER :

The matter is taken up through web hearing.

The petitioner is an Association representing the interest of management of various private colleges affiliated to the respondent/University. The grievance as projected in the present writ petition is in regard to the issuance of a letter of the respondent University dated 01.07.2016 informing the association as to the fixation of renewal of affiliation fee for self finance courses conducted by the member colleges at Rs.10,000/- per year, per course. The colleges were advised to pay all the arrears of renewal of affiliation fee on or before 31.07.2016. The substance of the challenge in the writ petition is that while revising the affiliation fee, the respondent University has not followed the mandatory procedures contemplated in the Madurai Kamaraj University Act, 1965 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'), the Statutes, Ordinances and the Regulations framed thereunder and hence, the revision suffered from patent illegality and liable to be interfered as being void.

2. The facts and the circumstances which gave rise to the present challenge are stated hereunder.

i) The member Colleges of the Association have been affiliated to the respondent University and their affiliation for many years has been continued without any disruption and in terms of their affiliation, courses have been conducted for many years successfully and the respondent has also been awarding the degrees all along to the students of those colleges.

ii) According to the petitioner Association, the University, all of a sudden issued a letter dated 16.07.2014 first time citing a resolution of the University Syndicate and the Senate dated 06.03.2006 and 31.03.2006 respectively directing affiliated colleges to remit prescribed fee for renewal of affiliation for the courses permitted by the University. The letter further admonished that the affiliation would be cancelled on failure to pay the revised fee. Subsequently several reminders appeared to have been issued in that regard.

iii) In continuation of their various communications on the subject matter, the University, vide its proceedings dated 30.03.2016, directed the affiliated Colleges to pay the recognition/affiliation fee immediately and informed them that the hall tickets for April, 2016 examination would be sent only on receipt of the revised affiliation fee. The proceedings dated 30.03.2016 was challenged by the Association in W.P.(MD).No.7469 of 2016. After hearing the parties, this Court, on 18.04.2016, set side the impugned proceedings therein dated 30.03.2016 of the respondent and directed the University to convene a meeting with the members of the petitioner Association before the commencement of the next academic year 2016-17 on or before 31.05.2016 for facilitating an amicable settlement in the matter. The relevant portions of the direction of this Court are extracted hereunder.

"6. From the above letter, the apprehension of the petitioner that the interest of the students in taking up the examinations for this academic year will be affected is taken care of. As per the said letter, the respondent University would send the hall tickets to the students studying in various colleges under the petitioner association enabling them to appear for the semester examinations commencing from 21.04.2016 and also publish their results as per schedule.

7. So far as the main issue is concerned, the learned counsel for the respondent University filed a typed set of papers enclosing the list of payment of affiliation fee by the affiliated colleges and the list of payment of renewal affiliation fee as on 01.03.2016 by the colleges which are in the membership of the petitioner association. Therefore, it is evident that the petitioner association itself is now divided as the few of the colleges made payment as demanded by the University and others are challenging the sa