Source: barandbench.com
The Supreme Court today stayed two orders passed by the Delhi High Court as per which Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University was required to conduct a fresh Common Entrance Test for admission to MBA course.
A Bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and Ajay Rastogi today stayed the order passed by a single judge Bench of Delhi High Court on April 12, 2019, and an order passed by a Division Bench of the High Court on May 29, 2019.
This would mean that the admission to Guru Gobind Singh University for MBA can be through Common Admission Test (CAT).
The petition states that the Union government after deliberations on the issue of admission to MBA courses had issued an order on February 11, 2019 permitting the Petitioner-University to adopt the National Level Tests/ All Indian Entrance Tests such as JEE Main Paper, CAT, CLAT-UG, CLAT-PG, NIMCET as basis for admissions to institutes affiliated to the Petitioner- University in various courses for the academic year 2019-20.
Pursuant to the same, the Petitioner-University had issued a circular on February 26, 2019 informing all concerned that the University will carry out admission for MBA course in University School of Study and affiliated colleges during the academic session 2019-20 on the basis of national level test i.e. CAT and CMAT.
Both – the order issued by Government and the circular by Petitioner-University were challenged by the Respondent-Association by way of writ petition titled ‘Self Financing Educational Institutions Association vs. Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University & Ors’.
Interpreting the provisions of the Delhi Professional College or Institutions (Prohibition of Capitation Fee, Regulation of Admission, Fixation of Non-Exploitative Fee and Other Measures to Ensure Equity and Excellence) Act 2007 (Act), the High Court stayed the order of the Central government and the circular of the University.
As per the said order of April 12, the Petitioner-University would be required to conduct a fresh Common Entrance Test (CET) for admission to the MBA Course for the Academic Session 2019-2020.
A Letters Patent Appeal was preferred by the University against the same. A Division Bench of the High Court hearing the LPA passed an interim order on May 24 granting temporary relief to the Petitioner-University. It allowed the Petitioner to hold MBA admissions for this academic year based on CAT score.
However, an application seeking review of that interim order was allowed and the High Court on May 29 ordered that the admissions shall be held in accordance with the directions in the order of April 12.
Guru Gobind Singh University moved the Supreme Court challenging this order of May 29 by which the High Court directed that admission to the MBA course shall be held in accordance with the order passed on April 12 by a Single Judge Bench in the petition filed by ‘Self Financing Educational Institutions Association’.
The Petitioner-University has contended that the cut off for conducting such test as per the judgment in Parshvanath Charitable Trust is May 31 making it virtually impossible for the University to conduct the same.
Even otherwise, the level of preparedness required for conducting a common entrance test is extreme, requiring a period of at least 3-4 months, involving multiple activities, the petitioner contends.
The petitioner has also cited a recent order passed by the Supreme Court by which similar orders passed by the Delhi High Court with respect to LLB admissions were stayed. In that case, the Supreme Court had allowed the Petitioner-University to conduct LLB admissions using the score of Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) instead of conducting a fresh CET.
The Supreme Court today stayed the High Court orders of May 29 and April 1.
The admissions for MBA can now be conducted by the Petitioner-University on the basis of CAT score.
