The Delhi High Court dismissed a PIL challenging higher registration fees for OBC-NCL students compared to reserved categories at Delhi University. The court held the fees are a valid policy decision based on economic differences and classification is reasonable.
Prayers for quashing of fees and refund dismissed.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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Date of Decision: 11.09.2019
UNIVERISTY OF DELHI ..... Respondent Through: Mr. Mohinder J.S. Rupal, Adv. with Mr. Prang Newmai, Mr. Hardik Rupal, Mr.Koushik Ghosh & Ms. Aditi Shastri, Advs.
CORAM: HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C.HARI SHANKAR
JUDGMENT
D.N. PATEL, CHIEF JUSTICE (ORAL)
CM APPL.40659/2019 (Restoration)
This application has been preferred for restoration of W.P.(C) 6847/2019, which was dismissed in default, vide order dated 11.07.2019. Petitioners in person submitted that because of traffic congestion etc. and for the reasons stated in this application, they could not attend this Court when the matter was called out on 11.07.2019.
Having heard the petitioners in person and looking into the reasons enumerated in the application, we hereby recall the order dated 11.07.2019, passed in W.P.(C) 6847/2019. W.P.(C) 6847/2019 is restored to its original number.
W.P.(C) 6847/2019 Page 1 of 4
The application stands disposed of.
W.P.(C) 6847/2019
“1. Issue direction, writ or order to respondent to quash the online registration which states that the registration fees for EWS is Rs. 300 and for OBC-NCL is Rs. 750.
2. Issue direction, writ or order to respondent to give benefit of economic relief to the aggrieved students i.e. students belonging to the OBC-NCL category.
3. Issue direction, writ or order to respondent to refund the extra- charged amount on the name of the registration fees of entrance by OBC-NCL.
4. To Issue direction, writ or order to release the fresh notification for the registration of entrance exam with justifiable grounds of fees difference between various categories.
5. To issue direction, writ or order the Respondent to follow the reservation guidelines and provisions provided by the Union of India.”
W.P.(C) 6847/2019 Page 2 of 4
students belonging to the reserved category of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Economically Weaker Section for postgraduate courses is fixed at ₹300/-, whereas for students belonging to Other Backward Classes, it is fixed at ₹750/-. Thus, students belonging to Other Backward Classes should be treated at par with the students belonging to the reserved category of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Economically Weaker Section. It is further submitted by petitioners in person that in Banaras Hindu University (U.P.), in Maharaja Sayajirao University (Vadodara) and in UPSC examination, the fees for students/candidates belonging to Other Backward Classes is same as for students/candidates belonging to the reserved category of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Economically Weaker Section. Hence, this writ petition has been preferred as a Public Interest Litigation.
W.P.(C) 6847/2019 Page 3 of 4
Backward Classes, who may not be economically weaker, it is fixed as ₹250/- and ₹750/- for undergraduate and postgraduate courses, respectively.
(iv) The classification narrated hereinabove is a valid classification and it has reasonable nexus with the objective to be achieved. Merely because in Banaras Hindu University (U.P.), Maharaja Sayajirao University (Vadodara) and in UPSC the fees for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and for Economically Weaker Section students is at par with the fees to be paid by Other Backward Classes, that does not mean that Delhi University should have the same registration fee for both the classes of students. It is left open for Delhi University to prescribe the fees for the two different classes. The fixing of registration fees by the Delhi University can, by no stretch of imagination, be said to be unreasonably excessive, or arbitrary. Hence, there is no substance in this writ petition.
CHIEF JUSTICE
C.HARI SHANKAR, J
SEPTEMBER 11, 2019 ns
W.P.(C) 6847/2019 Page 4 of 4
3 issues framed by the court
Whether the discrimination in registration fees between OBC-NCL and reserved categories at Delhi University violates fundamental rights.
Whether reservation guidelines apply to non-academic fees like registration charges.
Whether the university's classification of students based on economic status is valid.
Aditya Yadav
University of Delhi
D.N. Patel
H.C. Harishankar
As recorded by the court registry
A petition under Article 226 of the Constitution asking a High Court to issue a writ against the State or a public authority in a civil matter.
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
