Tripura High Court
Dr. Subrata Debnath vs Tripura University (A Central ... on 30 March, 2021
Equivalent citations: AIRONLINE 2021 TRI 192
Author: Akil Kureshi
Bench: Akil Kureshi, S.G. Chattopadhyay
Page 1 of 8
HIGH COURT OF TRIPURA
_A_G_A_R_T_A_L_A_
WA No.64 of 2018
Dr. Subrata Debnath, son of late Bijoy Kumar Debnath, resident of
Dhaleswar, Road No.8, Agartala, P.O. Dhaleswar, P.S. East Agartala,
District- West Tripura.
......... Appellant(s)
Versus
1. Tripura University (A Central University), Suryamaninagar, West
Tripura, Pin-799022, India, represented by its Registrar, Tripura
University (A Central University), Suryamaninagar, West Tripura, P.O.
Suryamaninagar, P.S. Amtali, Pin-799022, District- West Tripura.
2. Dr. Debarshi Mukherjee, son of Sri Sudhir Mukherjee, presently
serving as Associate Professor, Department of Business Management,
Tripura University (A Central University), Suryamaninagar, West
Tripura. Notice to be served through the Registrar, Tripura University
(A Central University), Suryamaninagar, West Tripura, P.O.
Suryamaninagar, P.S. Amtali, Pin-799022, District- West Tripura.
3. Visva-Bharati University, District- Birbhum, P.O. Santiniketan, West
Bengal, India, Pin-731235, represented by its Registrar, having its office
at Visva-Bharati University, District- Birbhum, P.O. Santiniketan, West
Bengal, India, Pin-731235.
......Respondent(s)
_B_E_F_O_R_E_
HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. AKIL KURESHI
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.G. CHATTOPADHYAY
For Appellant(s) : Mr. S. Lodh, Advocate.
For Respondent(s) : Mr. S.M. Chakraborty, Sr. Advocate,
Mr. T.D. Majumder, Sr. Advocate,
Mr. D. Bhattacharya, Sr. Advocate,
Ms. P. Chakraborty, Advocate,
Mr. T. Halam, Advocate.
Judgment & Order
delivered on : 30th March, 2021.
Whether fit for reporting : NO.
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JUDGMENT & ORDER (ORAL)
(Akil Kureshi, CJ) This appeal is filed by the original petitioner to challenge the judgment of the learned Single Judge dated 30.05.2017 in WP(C) No.367 of 2016.
[2] Brief facts are as under :
The petitioner holds a degree of Master's in Business Administration. The respondent No.1 Tripura University had invited applications for appointment to the post of Associate Professor in Business Management under an advertisement dated 20.03.2013. Respondent No.2 as well as the petitioner had both applied for the said post. Respondent No.2 was selected and appointed. He had claimed that he had obtained the degree of Master's in Business Administration from Visva-Bharati University. This assertion the petitioner has seriously challenged. Visva-Bharati University was therefore joined as respondent No.3.
[3] Before the learned Single Judge the petitioner vehemently argued that the respondent No.2 did not have the requisite educational qualifications for the post in question as per the advertisement. He was not awarded degree by Visva-Bharati University but by a private institute which was not a valid degree. He had relied on certain replies Page 3 of 8 received from Visva-Bharati University in response to his queries under Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act, for short). The learned Single Judge dismissed the petition upon which this appeal is filed. [4] Pending this appeal the petitioner raised further queries before Visva-Bharati University under RTI Act and the documents that he received in response to such applications, were produced along with IA No.02 of 2019. This IA was disposed of on 30.01.2019 in following terms :
"Subject to just exceptions, appellant is permitted to place on record certain documents annexed along with the application being Annexures-1 to 6. Equally, without prejudice, it shall be open for the parties to place additional materials, if so required, in accordance with law. Application stands disposed of."
[5] On the basis of such materials on record, learned counsel Shri S. Lodh for the appellant submitted that the respondent No.2 did not have the requisite educational qualifications prescribed for the post in question. His degree was not issued by a recognized university or a deemed university. He relied on Section 22 of the UGC Act to contend that only such university can issue a valid degree. He took us through documents on record to contend that the respondent No.2 was never awarded degree by Visva-Bharati University and the Tripura University Page 4 of 8 therefore committed a serious error in considering the candidate as eligible for the post in question.
[6] The respondents opposed the appeal. Shri T.D. Majumder appearing for the selected candidate submitted that the petitioner had raised misleading queries under RTI. His question was whether Visva- Bharati University ever issued degrees in Business Management to which the answer was no. However, the respondent No.2 had obtained Master's degree in Business Administration. He pointed out that Visva- Bharati University had also filed affidavit supporting the case of respondent No.2.
[7] Learned counsel Shri S.M. Chakraborty appeared for the Tripura University and submitted that after detailed correspondence with Visva-Bharati University when it was certified that the respondent No.2 had obtained a valid degree in Business Administration and which was issued by Visva-Bharati University, on the basis of his performance during the selection process, he was offered appointment. [8] Under the said advertisement dated 20.03.2013 Tripura University which is a Central University, had advertized number of teaching posts, one of them being of Assistant Professor (Business Page 5 of 8 Management). The essential educational qualifications for the post would be as under :
"(i) Consistently good academic record with at least 55% marks (or an equivalent grade in a point scale wherever grading system is followed) in Master's Degree in Business Management/Administration/in a management related discipline or first class in two years full time PGDM declared equivalent by AIU/recognized by the AICTE/UGC;
Or, First Class graduate and professionally qualified Chartered Accountant / Cost and Works Accountant/Company Secretary of the concerned Statutory Body.
(ii) Ph.D. or Fellow of Indian Institute of Management or of an Institute recognized by AICTE and declared equivalent by the AIUl;
(iii) A minimum of eight years' experience of teaching/industry/research/professional at managerial level excluding the period spent for obtaining the research degree;
Or,
(iv) In the event the candidate is form industry and the profession, the following requirements shall constitute as essential requirements:
(1) Consistently good academic record with at least 55% marks (or an equivalent grade in a point scale wherever grading system is followed) in Master's Degree in Business Management/Administration/in a management related discipline or first class in two years full time PGDM declared equivalent by AIU/recognized by the AICTE/UGC;
Or, First Class graduate and professionally qualified Chartered Accountant / Cost and Works Accountant/Company Secretary of the concerned Statutory Body.
(iii) A minimum of ten years' experience of teaching / industry / research/profession, out of which five years must be at the level of Assistant Professor or equivalent excluding the period spent for obtaining the research degree. The candidate should have professional work experience, which is significant and can be recognized at National / International level as equivalent to Ph.D. and ten years' managerial experience in industry/ profession of which at least five years should be at the level comparable to that of Lecturer/Assistant Professor."
[9] The respondent No.2 claimed that he had obtained Master's Degree in Business Administration from a recognized university. He had Page 6 of 8 produced certificate to this effect. It is not in dispute that Visva-Bharati is a Central University. The only dispute raised by the petitioner was that the respondent No.2 had not pursued his course with this University but with a private institution, namely, Institute of Modern Management. However, this only reveals half truth. The documents on record would suggest that the said institute was affiliated with Visva-Bharati and the degree certificate was issued by the Visva-Bharati University. For example, at page 139 is a degree certificate issued by the Registrar of Visva-Bharati University in favour of respondent No.2 declaring that he was awarded a degree of Master's of Business Administration upon his successful completion of the two years programme in the years 1998- 2000 with institution of Modern Management, Kolkata. At page 140, is a mark-sheet issued by the concerned institute in favour of respondent No.2. The Tripura University had also entered into detailed correspondence with Visva-Bharati in this respect. At page 153, is a certificate issued by the In-charge Associate of Visva-Bharati certifying that the respondent No.2 was a student of MBA of institute of Modern Management during the session 1998-2000 and the University had no objection with the respondent No.2 pursuing higher studies elsewhere. Upon multiple communications from Tripura University, Visva-Bharati had also clarified that the respondent No.2 had successfully completed two years study programme for the session 1998-2000 upon which he Page 7 of 8 was awarded the Master's Degree of Business Administration. In one such certificate dated 29.12.2015 the Joint Registrar of Visva-Bharati had clarified that the student had pursued such course with institute of Modern Management which is one of the former Associate Institute of Visva-Bharati. He also noticed that the respondent No.2 had pursued his entire studies up to graduation with Visva-Bharati University itself. [10] Various answers that the petitioner received in response to his queries under RTI and which were produced in the original petition, can advance his case no further since as correctly pointed out by the counsel for the respondents the queries themselves were wrong. If the petitioner asked whether Visva-Bharati had awarded any degree in Business Management and if the answer was no, that did not mean that Visva-Bharati University did not award degrees in Master's of Business Administration which the respondent No.2 possessed. Further documents have been produced by the petitioner during the pendency of the appeal along with IA No.02 of 2019 which as noted was disposed of on 30.01.2019. It only permitted the documents being taken on record. It did not establish any link with the controversy at hand. We have perused the queries and the answers given to the petitioner by the University. It is in the direction of awarding degrees to convocation. None of the answers for the University would persuade us to hold that the Page 8 of 8 respondent No.2 did not pursue his course of Business Administration in the institute affiliated with Visva-Bharati and that Visva-Bharati did not award a degree certificate upon completion of the course. These questions raised by the petitioner under RTI are more in the nature of fishing inquiries which in any case cannot be permitted at appellate stage. Essentially now the petitioner wishes to shift the focus of his challenge from the degree awarded to respondent No.2 being not by a recognized university to the very genuineness of the certificate issued. Till this stage even the petitioner did not doubt the correctness of the certificates but merely stated that it can be seen as the respondent No.2 having been awarded degree by a private institute not a recognized university.
[11] In the ultimate analysis, we find no error in the view of the learned Single Judge. The appeal is, therefore, dismissed. Pending application(s), if any, also stands disposed of.
(S.G. CHATTOPADHYAY), J (AKIL KURESHI), CJ Dipesh