Varsity opposes plea of Alagiri trust college

Madurai: The state-run Anna University of Technology opposed in the Madras High Court bench the plea for temporary affiliation by an engineering college set up by a trust in which Union Minister M K Alagiri is a member.
   
Registrar of Anna University of Technology, Madurai, E B Perumal Pillai in a counter affidavit said the high court could neither arrogate itself the powers to grant affiliation nor issue a positive direction to a university to grant affiliation.
   
Opposing the plea of Dhaya College of Engineering, set up by the M K Alagiri Educational Trust here, the Registrar also said the university had no powers to grant temporary affiliation as sought by the college.
   
He also quoted a Division Bench's judgement relating to the Madras University and said no college could claim affiliation as a matter of right.
   
The college had sought temporary affiliation from the university for the year 2012-13, besides permission to participate in the ongoing counselling for engineering admissions.
   
The college, set up last year, was denied affiliation on the ground that there were some defects in the infrastructure. But the college officials had said they had rectified all the defects pointed out by the AUT team. 

HC advocates aid washerman's son with education fee

Madurai: The Madurai Bench of Madras High court lent a helping hand to a poor washerman by mobilising Rs 60,000 from advocates for his son's education after his plea for loan was rejected by a bank on technical ground.

Justice K Venkataraman, who took pity on the petitioner, C Muthiah of Pannaipuram from Theni district, made a request to the six advocates in the court hall if they could meet the educational expenses (Rs 59,705) of the boy doing Diploma in Electronics and Communication Engineering.

When the petition challenging rejection of the education loan came up before him, the Judge observed that a Division Bench of the court had given some judgements which were binding on the banks and they could not be compelled if the loans had been rejected on technical ground.

The petitioner submitted initially that Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank, Pannaipuram, refused to give even the education loan application.

He approached the court in 2011 and the court directed the bank to give him the application and consider it and dispose it of in two weeks. But the bank rejected the application on the ground that his s on got only  70 out of 200 in mathematics and he got the seat under Management quota.
  
The bank also cited that the petitioner's wife was a member of a Self-Help Group which was in the Non-Performing Asset status with an outstanding loan of Rs 37,118, and rejected the loan.
  
Unable to grant any relief on the petition, the Judge, who had himself offered to undertake the  education expenses of a student similarly placed earlier, made the request to the advocates.

Responding to the Judge's request, Pala Ramaswamy, Isaac Mohanlal, Ajmal Khan, Prabhurajadurai Maheswaran, Lajapathiroy and Anandhapadmanbhan together contributed Rs 60,000. 

Madurai HC dismisses petition against MKU

Madurai: Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court dismissed a PIL seeking CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the appointment of faculty members in Madurai Kamaraj University from 2008 to 2011.
   
A Division bench of Justice Banumathi and Justice B.Rajendran said the University Senate had passed a resolution for appointing a committee to probe the issue.If the petitioner had any grievance, he could inform the committee first.There was an in-built mechanism to address such issues. 
    
The bench declined to direct MKU to register a complaint with CBI on the issue.
     
The Petitioner,I Ismail,a senate member, alleged that "irregularities" committed between 2008-2011 when P Karpaga Kumaravel was the Vice-Chancellor were reported in the audit report submitted for 2010-2011.
    
"Therefore, it is for the Senate and the new Vice Chancellor to take necessary action if the petitioner brings the irregularities and illegalities committed by the second respondent (Kumaravel) to the notice on the basis of the audit report. We do not find any reason to interfere with the matter at this early stage", the judges said.
     
Dismissing the plea, the judges said "It is always open for the petitioner to approach the appropriate authorities and bring to their notice for follow-up action. He being the Senate member, he can definitely do so in the manner known to law instead of rushing to the Court at the earliest stage with Public Interest Litigation." 

High Court bench quashes DSE's order

Madurai: The Madurai High Court bench has quashed the Director of School Education's order, taking over the administration of an aided minority school in Kanyakuamari district and said any power exercised to do so is barred under provisions of the Tamil Nadu Recognised Private Schools (Regulation) Act, 1973.
    
The aided Linguistic Minority Sarojini Memorial Higher Secondary School at Orappanavillai was established in 1947.    

An anonymous letter was sent to the Collector, alleging that school staff were ill-treated and forced to do personal work for the Correspondent. A junior assistant had also charged the Correspondent with sexual harrasment.
   
Later a show cause notice was issued on Aug 20 2007 by the DEO, directing the correspondent to explain why staff should not be directly paid, based on complaints against him.      

The DSE had passed another order on Nov 8, 2008, whereby the rights of the Manager-cum-Correspondent was taken away. Hence the correspondent filed a petition, seeking to quash the order of DSE.
    
Disposing the petition, Justice K.Ravichandra Babu said the school was admittedly, a linguistic minority school, protected under Article 30 of the Constitution. Though the department was entitled to make direct payment even in respect of such schools, the power of taking over the managements is barred under Section 36 of the Tamil Nadu Recognised Private Schools (Regulation) Act, 1973, he said.
    
Stating that the DSE's action was totally erroneous and without jurisdiction, the judge said it was a violation of the principles of natural justice and quashed the impugned order.
  
However, the judge said it is open to the authorities to proceed against the correspondent afresh after strictly following the principles of natural justice. 

B.Ed Special Education candidates to get application form for TRB

Madurai: The Madras High Court bench here directed the authorities to give suitable instructions to District Educational Officers to issue application forms to the members of all district Special B.Ed Graduate association also and therby allow them participate in Teacher Eligiblity Test to be conducted on Jun 3.
  
Justice D Hariparanthaman gave the direction admitting a petition by All Districts Special B.Ed Graduate Association represented by its state president P Vadivel Murugan.   

The petitioner submitted there were 193 members in the association in different districts and have enrolled themselves before the appropriate District Employment Exchange. After completion of UG or PG degree, they have also completed B.Ed Special Education on the subjects like Mental Retardation, Visually impairment, Hearing Impairment and Orthopaedically impairement, which are regulated by Rehablitation Council of India as well as National Council for Teachers Education.
  
The B.Ed Special Education candidates were alone eligible to be appointed as Teachers for the disabled students as well as normal students as per recent circular by the Union Human resources department circular.
  
"Since many of members are waiting for more than decades together with a legitimate expectation that they would be recruited in regular vacancy.The members in fact better than regular B.Ed candidates to handle the students. A preference ought to have been given to us butunfortunately it was not done" the petitioner said. 

Madras High Court criticises college over dismissal of students

Madurai:  The Madras High Court criticised an autonomous college for dismissing a boy and a girl student, for reportedly being in possession of mobile phones inside the college campus and for traveling together in public bus after the college.

The two students were pursuing first year BCA at the college.

Directing the college to re-admit the students, Justice V Dhanapalan said "in a civilised and developed society, free movement of students irrespective of the sex they belong to cannot be faulted by the institution. If it is construed in a wrong sense, there will not be any headway with regard to the day to day affairs of the students".

The judge suggested that a mechanism should be devised to administer a code of conduct to regulate the use of mobile phones in educational institutions.

"This court has much concern about the usage of cell phones in the manner as used by the students. It is for the State authorities, educational institutions and all other stake-holders in the respective field to evolve a mechanism with regard to the usage of cell phones by students", the judge said.

However mere possession of mobile phones inside the campus cannot deny a student his/her fundamental right to education, he added. "Education is a fundamental right for the students. Mere use of technological  advancement which causes certain inconvenience will not deprive them of their right to education", the judge said.

The parents of the students moved the court after the college initiated disciplinary proceedings against the students, without giving them a chance to explain them.

Criticising the decision of the college the judge said, "The (dismissal) order is ex-facie illegal, non-speaking with total non-application of mind besides being passed without affording an opportunity to the petitioners. It is violation of natural justice and the decision is totally unwarranted".

The judge issued directions to the college administration to re-admit the students in the college immediately. The period of absence of the students, during the dismissal, shall be reckoned as attendance so that it enables them to appear for exams in due court, the judge said.  

College cannot dismiss mobile phone using students: HC

Madurai: Madras High Court criticised an autonomous college near here for dismissing a boy and a girl student, for reportedly being in possession of mobile phones inside the college campus and for traveling together in public bus after the college.

The two students were pursuing first year BCA at the college. Directing the college to re-admit the students, Justice V Dhanapalan said “in a civilised and developed society, free movement of students irrespective of the sex they belong to cannot be faulted by the institution. If it is construed in a wrong sense, there will not be any headway with regard to the day to day affairs of the students”.

The judge suggested that a mechanism should be devised to administer a code of conduct to regulate the use of mobile phones in educational institutions.

“This court has much concern about the usage of cell phones in the manner as used by the students. It is for the State authorities, educational institutions and all other stake-holders in the respective field to evolve a mechanism with regard to the usage of cell phones by students”, the judge said.

However mere possession of mobile phones inside the campus cannot deny a student his/her fundamental right to education, he added.

“Education is a fundamental right for the students. Mere use of technological advancement which causes certain inconvenience will not deprive them of their right to education”, the judge sasid.

The parents of tthe students moved the court after the college initiated disciplinary proceedings against the students, without giving them a chance to explain them.

Criticising the decision of the college the judge said, “The (dismissal) order is ex-facie illegal, non-speaking with total non-application of mind besides being passed without affording an opportunity to the petitioners. It is violation of natural justice and the decision is totally unwarranted”.

The judge issued directions to the college administration to re-admit the students in the college immediately. The period of absence of the students, during the dismissal, shall be reckoned as attendance so that it enables them to appear for exams in due court, the judge said.

HC orders compensation to victims of sexual abuse in government school

Madurai: Madras High Court Bench here has ordered Rs 1.2 lakh compensation each to girl students of a government school who were sexually abused allegedly by their headmaster and directed the District Superintendent of Police to entrust the probe in the case to a woman DSP and file the final report within two months.

Disposing of two petitions filed by the parents the victims of the school at Pothumbu in the district, Justice K Chandru directed the District Collector to give Rs 1.2 lakh each to the girls, most of whom are Dalits, without waiting for the trial process to be completed.

Headmaster M Arogiasamy (54) was alleged to have sexually abused several girls studying from fifth to 10th standards for several months. A case was registered against him in July last year and he surrendered to police almost a month later amid protests by various women's organisation demanding action.

Noting that three inquiry reports, including one by the rural police, gave different number of victims, the court directed the collector to ascertain the veracity of the complaints enabling disbursal of compensation.

Directing the SP to personally monitor the progress of the case by calling for fortnightly reports from the investigating officer, the court also asked him to file the final inquiry report within two months. The investigating officer must have enough sensitivity while examining the children.

The Judge directed the trial court not to insist the children to be brought repeatedly and also to prevent the accused or the counsel from cross examining them directly.

He ordered that Arogiasamy be kept under suspension till the completion of the criminal trial and directed the Police not to allow him into Pothumbu village till a final report is filed before the appropriate criminal court.

Madras HC issues notice to Centre and CBSE

Madurai: The Madras High Court bench here has ordered notice to the Centre and CBSE seeking to reply within four weeks on a petition seeking to conduct All India Engineering/Architectural Entrance Examination and All India Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Entrance Examinations with question papers in regional languages listed in Schedule VIII of the constitution.
  
The petitioner K Pachaimal, a retired Tamil Teacher, said CBSE was conducting All India Common Entrance Examination for the admission to Engineering, Architecture, Medical and Dental Courses.
   
She said students who completed their Higher Secondary Examination through Tamil as  medium of Instruction would be forced to appear in the Common Entrance Examination either in English or Hindi, which was against their right to equality.
  
A Majority of these students are from urban poor, rural and weaker section of the society and have knowledge in their necessary subjects through their mother Tongue. But they will lose their opportunity as the question papers were prepared in English and Hindi.
   
The petitioner said students studying in their mother tongue should be given an equal opportunity to appear in the examination.
   
Justice Chitra Venkataraman and Justice R Karuppiah ordered notice to the Centre and CBSE seeking reply a four weeks. 

New accreditation system will ensure quality education: NBA

Madurai: Engineering colleges and technical institutions in the country will be forced to maintain quality now with the National Board of Accreditation (NBA) spearheading a new accreditation system, a top official of the agency said.

Various crucial aspects of technical education would be scrutinised and colleges that fulfil the set criteria would get accreditation, NBA Member-Secretary D K Paliwal said.

NBA has just prepared a new accreditation manual to help professional colleges impart quality education, he said inaugurating a two-day national seminar on salient aspects of the new accreditation system (Washington Accord) at Kariappatti near here.

NBA is a provisional Member of Washington Accord, an international agreement aimed at bringing about global quality standards in technical education among member countries.

Paliwal cautioned the colleges that the new accreditation system was purely an outcome-based system and they had to necessarily focus on competence, quality, relevance and students' employability as India geared up to become a permanent signatory of the Washington Accord.

"A new accreditation system became essential due to increasing migration of professionals and mobility of students. So, internationally accepted accreditation procedures had to be put in place so that countries will be assured of uniformity in quality," he said.

The NBA is stepping up its quality checks as India, which has been recognised as a rising economic power, cannot afford to be outside that quality league, he stressed. The NBA will soon start receiving accreditation applications online.