Universities must ensure timely conduct of examinations and results publication to protect students' educational rights.

JUDGMENT

The petitioners have approached this court aggrieved by the delay in scheduling the practical examinations for the degree course in off-campus system.

2. Petitioners are students of B.Com course 2012-13 to 2014-15 under the off-campus system of Mahatma Gandhi University. They appeared for final year written examination in May 2015. The practical examination is not scheduled so far in the off campus system, whereas practical examinations are completed and results are published in other systems of B.Com course during 2012-13 to 2014-15. The petitioners allege that while so, respondents invited application for Post Graduate Course for the year 2015-16 to 2016-17 without publshing the results of degree courses during 2012-13 to 2014-15 in the off-campus system. The petitioners further allege that due to the delay in conducting the practical examination and publishing the result from the part of university in the off campus system, the petitioners apprehends that they would be denied opportunity to join the post graduate course. The petitioners alleges that they are entitled to get opportunity to submit application for admission to the Post Graduate Course for year 2015-2016. The respondents are bound to publish result of degree courses during 2012-13 to 2014-15 before inviting applications for Post Graduate course for the year 2015-16 to 2016-17. However, the students from off campus system are illegally discriminated and illegally denied opportunities for Post Graduate Course. It is further pointed out that the first petitioner got admitted to Pondicherry University as an MBA (Insurance) student. His classes started on 20.7.2015. The admission is subject to production of the Mark sheets, provisional certificate and migration certificate from the respondent university on or before 30.8.2015. Due to the latches of respondents, it is apprehended that the first petitioner would not be able to produce the documents within the stipulated time and resultantly he may lose the admission to the M.B.A course at Pondichery University, which is his great dream.

3. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned standing counsel for the respondent university in the matter.

4. The learned standing counsel for the respondent University on instructions would submit that the entire process would be over by 31.12.2015.

Recording the said submission, the writ petition is disposed of directing the respondent university to adhere to the above time schedule and to publish the result of the petitioners within the aforesaid time without fail. It shall be open to the petitioners to apply for confidential mark sheets after tabulation is over and in the event of submitting such requests, the same shall be honoured by the respondent university without fail.