Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
‐ vs ‐ on 11 August, 2014
Author: Jyotirmay Bhattacharya
Bench: Jyotirmay Bhattacharya
IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
Civil Appellate Jurisdiction
Appellate Side
Present:
The Hon'ble Justice Jyotirmay Bhattacharya
and
The Hon'ble Justice Tapash Mookherjee
W.P 32335(W) of 2013
With
CAN 12217 of 2013
And
CAN 6029 of 2014
Sudipta Kumar Maity & Ors.
‐Vs‐
University Grants Commission & Ors.
For the petitioner : Mr. Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya
: Mr. Samim Ahmmed
: Ms. Ruchira Chatterjee
For the W.B.S.C : Mr. Pulak Ranjan Mandal
: Ms. Bandana Das
: Mr. D. Banerjee
For the Kalyani University : Mr. Amitava Chaudhuri
: Ms. Annesha Kar Gupta
: Mr. Somnath Banerjee
For the University of Calcutta : Ms. Sampa Sarkar
For the University Grants : Mr. Anil Kumar Gupta
Commission
For the Union of India : Mr. Bhaskar Prasad Benerjee
Heard on : 04.08.2014,
Judgment on : 11th August, 2014
Jyotirmay Bhattacharya, J.
The petitioners are all Ph. D Degree holders in different subjects. Petitioner Nos. 1-22 acquired Ph. D Degree in different subjects from different universities before the University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards And Procedure For Award Of M. Phil/Ph. D) Regulation, 2009 came into force. Rest of the petitioners have either registered themselves for the Ph. D Programme or have been admitted to the Ph. D course on the basis of the result of their viva voce examination held before the said Regulation of 2009 came into force. They are aspirants for the post of Assistant Professor or equivalent positions in the Universities/Colleges/Institutions. They claimed exemption from appearing in the National Eligibility Test or State Level Eligibility Test in the same way as such exemption was extended to the candidates who acquired Ph. D degree as per the University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of M. Phil/Ph. D) Regulation, 2009.
Let us now consider as to whether such relief can be granted to the writ petitioners in the instant case. In exercise of the power conferred by Clause (e) and (g) of Sub-section (1) of Section 26 read with Section 14 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956, the University Grants Commission made the regulation, namely, the University Grants Commission (Minimum Qualification Required For Appointment And Career Advancement Of Teachers In Universities And Institutions Affiliated To It) Regulation, 2000. The relevant portion of the said Regulation with which we are concerned is set out hereunder:-
"NET shall remain the compulsory requirement for appointment as Lecturer even for candidates having Ph. D degree. However, the candidates who have completed M. Phil Degree or have submitted Ph. D thesis in the concerned subject upto 31st December, 1993 are exempted from appearing in the NET examination".
The said regulation was subsequently amended in the year 2002 by way of substitution of the following provision in the place of the aforesaid earlier provision:-
" NET shall remain compulsory requirement for appointment as Lecturer even for candidates having Ph. D Degree. However, the candidates who have completed M.Phil Degree by 31st December, 1993 or have submitted Ph. D thesis to the University in the concerned subject on or before 31st December, 2002 are exempted from appearing in the NET examination. In case such candidates fail to obtain Ph. D Degree, they shall have to pass the NET examination."
The said provision made in the Regulation of 2002 was again amended in the year 2006 and the following provision was substituted in the place of the earlier provision.
"NET shall remain compulsory requirement for appointment as Lecturer even for those with post graduate Degree. However, the candidates having Ph. D Degree in the concerned subject are exempted from NET from PG level and UG level teaching. The candidates having M. Phil Degree in the concerned subject are exempted from NET for UG level teaching only".
Again the Regulation of 2006 was replaced by third Amendment of Regulation in 2009 which substituted the following provision in the place of the earlier provision as mentioned above:-
" NET/SLET shall remain the minimum eligibility condition for recruitment and appointment of Lecturers in Universities/Colleges/Institutions."
"Provided, however, that candidates, who are or have been awarded Ph. D. Degree in compliance of the "University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards And Procedure For Award Of M. Phil/Ph. D Degree), Regulation 2009, shall be exempted from the requirement of the minimum eligibility condition of NET/SLET for recruitment and appointment of Assistant Professor or equivalent positions in Universities/Colleges/Institutions".
The Regulation of 2009 came into effect from 11th July, 2009.
Subsequently another Regulation, namely, University Grants Commission (Minimum Qualification For Appointment of Teachers And Other Academic Staff In Universities And Colleges And Other Measures For The Maintenance Of Standards In Higher Education) Regulation was framed in the year 2010. The criteria regarding direct recruitment of Assistant Professor in Arts, Humanities, Sciences, Social Sciences, Commerce, Education, Languages, Law, Journalism and Mass-communication are provided in Clause 4.4.2.1 with which we are presently concerned. The said provision is set out hereunder:-
(i) Good academic record as defined by the concerned University with at least 55% marks (or an equivalent grade in a point scale wherever grading system is followed) at the Master's Degree level, in the relevant subject form an Indian University or an equivalent Degree from a foreign University.
(ii) Besides fulfilling the above qualifications, candidates must have cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET) for lectures conducted by the UGC, CISR, or similar test accredited by the UGC like SLET/SET.
(iii) Notwithstanding anything contained in the sub-Clauses 4.4.2.1, candidates, who are, or have been awarded Ph. D Degree in accordance with the University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards and Procedure for award of M. Phil/Ph. D) Regulation 2009, shall be exempted from the requirement of the minimum eligibility condition of NET/SLET/SET for recruitment and appointment of Assistant Professor or equivalent positions in Universities/Colleges/ Institutions.
(iv) NET/SLET/SET shall also not be required for such Master's Programmes in disciplines for which NET/SLET/SET is not conducted.
Thus, the Regulation of 2010 makes it clear that the candidates who have acquired at least 55% marks at the Master Degree Level in a relevant subject from any Indian University or an equivalent Degree from an accredited Foreign University is eligible to appear in the National Eligibility Test (NET) conducted by the UGC, CISR or any similar test accredited by the UGC like SLET/SET and those candidates who will qualify in the said NET or SLET or SET test will be considered for appointment as Assistant Professor or in equivalent positions in Universities/Colleges/Institutions. Under the said Regulation, an exemption was granted to the candidates who have been awarded Ph. D Degree in accordance with the University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards And Procedure For Award of M.Phil/Ph. D) Regulation, 2009. Under the said Regulation they are exempted from fulfilling the requirement of minimum eligibility condition of clearing the NET/SLET/SET for being considered for appointment as Assistant Professors or in equivalent positions in Universities/Colleges/Institutions.
None of the petitioners acquired Ph. D Degree after the Regulation of 2009 was enforced. Regulation of 2009 introduced a detailed procedure for admission of the students in the Ph. D course in all Universities and Institutions deemed to be Universities and Colleges/Institutions of national importance. Course work which are to be carried out by Doctoral candidates under the guidance of the allocated supervisor in these Universities and Institutions has also been defined therein. How their Research Work will be evaluated and the mode of assessment of their Research Work has also been prescribed in the said Regulation. Ultimately after successful completion of the evaluation process and announcement of the award of M. Phil /Ph. D Degree, the University is required to submit a soft copy of the M. Phil/Ph. D thesis to the UGC within a period of thirty days, for hosting the same on INFLIBNET, accessible to all Institutions/Universities. The degree awarding University, Institution deemed to be University, college/Institution of national importance, as the case may be, is required to issue a Provisional Certificate certifying to the effect that the Degree has been awarded in accordance with the provisions of the said Regulations of UGC framed in 2009. Regulation of 2010 provides that if a candidate acquires any Ph. D Degree by following the aforesaid Regulation of 2009, then only such candidate will be exempted from fulfilling the requirement of qualifying in the NET, SLET or SET test.
Prior to 2009, there was no Rule prescribing the procedure for admission in Ph. D course. Since the petitioners acquired Ph. D Degree prior to 2009, they did not undergo the same procedure for admission in the Ph. D course which was introduced for the first time by the Regulation of 2009. They, however, claimed that since the Ph. D Degree was awarded to them after due assessment of their Research Work and/or the thesis submitted by them by the recognized Universities and/or the deemed Universities, they cannot be singled out simply because of the fact that they did not pass through the same admission process which was introduced in the Regulation of 2009, even though the recognized Universities and/or the deemed Universities recognized their quality of Research Work and Doctoral Degree was awarded to them after due assessment of the quality of their Research Work in different subjects. Since the fate of such Ph. D holders who acquired Ph. D Degree prior to the Regulation of 2009 came into effect was clouded, an expert body of University Grants Commission was constituted which after considering the various aspects, recommended that all those who were admitted to the Ph. D course prior to 11th July, 2009, would be exempted from NET Requirement only if they satisfy six out of ten criteria laid down for admission to Ph. D course outlined in the UGC (Minimum Standards And Procedure For Award Of M. Phil/Ph. D) Regulation, 2009 as framed by UGC Standing Committee on Ph. D Regulation, 2009. It was also recommended that the University concerned will verify as to whether the six out of ten criteria as laid down for admission to Ph. D Degree outlined in UGC (Minimum Standards And Procedure For Award of M. Phil/Ph. D) Regulation, 2009 have been satisfied in case of each individual Ph. D holder.
Fact remains that though such recommendation was given by an expert body but the government did not ultimately accept the said recommendation while framing the University Grants Commission (Minimum Qualification For Appointment Of Teachers And Other Academic Staff In Universities And Colleges And Other Measures For The Maintenance Of Standards In Higher Education) Regulation, 2010.
The legality and/or constitutional validity of such Regulation was tested before the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of University Grants Commission & Anr. -Vs- Neha Anil Bode (Gadekar) reported in 2013(10) SCC 519 wherein it was held that the qualifying criteria laid down by the UGC in implementation of the opinion of the experts cannot be considered as arbitrary, illegal, discriminatory or violative of Article 14 of the Constitution. Thus, the constitutional validity of the said Regulation of 2009 was tested by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and was declared as valid and intra vires and as such no relaxation can be granted to the candidates who have not acquired the Ph. D Degree in conformity with the Regulation framed in 2009. In this regard a question has come up for consideration before us as to whether exemption from appearing in the SLET/NET/SET can be granted to a candidate who has acquired Ph. D Degree before Regulation of 2009 came into effect but by following the identical procedure as was introduced by the Regulation of 2009 for conferment of Ph. D Degree upon the Doctoral Candidates.
Mr. Mandal, Learned Advocate, appearing for the West Bengal College Service Commission submits on instruction from his client that such exemption is being granted to the candidates who acquired Ph. D Degree before the Regulation of 2009 came into effect but by following the same procedure for grant of Doctoral Degree as introduced in the Regulation of 2009.
He further submits that even before Regulation of 2009 was framed, some of the Universities followed identical admission procedure and the Research Work after completion of the course work by the Doctoral candidates was also assessed in the same manner as introduced by the Regulation of 2009 and the candidates who acquired such Doctoral Degree from those Universities after passing through the identical procedure in conformity with the procedure subsequently introduced by the Regulation of 2009, are granted the exemption from appearing in the SLET, NET, or SET examination. He further submits that his client has examined each individual candidate who acquired Ph. D Degree before 2009 Regulation was enforced in the manner as aforesaid and decided the fate of each individual candidate as to whom such exemption can be granted and who cannot be granted such exemption. He further informs that IIT Kharagpur, Jawharlal Nehru University, New Delhi granted Ph. D Degree to the doctoral candidates even prior to 2009 by following the identical procedure as was introduced by the Regulation of 2009 by the University Grants Commission. He informs us that exemption was granted to those candidates who acquired Ph. D Degree from IIT Kharagpur or Jawharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
He further submits that the relevant documents submitted by the individual writ petitioners in support of their Ph. D Degree were duly considered by the College Service Commission and since on examination of those documents it was found by the College Service Commission that they did not acquire Ph. D Degree in conformity with the Regulation of 2009, they cannot be granted the exemption as claimed by them in the writ petition.
It is an admitted position that none of the petitioners underwent the admission procedure for getting admission in the Ph. D course under any University in conformity with the provision as introduced by the Regulation of 2009. It is also an admitted position that none of the writ petitioners conducted the course work before submission of the thesis in conformity with the provision as introduced by the Regulation of 2009.
As such we cannot come to the conclusion that the writ petitioners acquired Ph. D Degree by observing the procedure as introduced by the said Regulation. Thus, when the said Regulation of 2009 was framed for upgrading the standard of teaching the students in higher studies and also for maintaining uniformity in the standard of teaching the students in the higher studies all over the country, we feel that the object for which such Regulation was framed will not be achieved if relaxation to the students is granted. Any candidate who deserve such relaxation strictly in conformity with the Regulation framed in 2009 by the University Grants Commission, can only be granted such exemption.
Before parting with, we feel it necessary to mention here that the writ petitioners cannot feel aggrieved even if exemption claimed by them is not granted to them as even if such exemption is not grated to them, they will not be knocked out from the zone of consideration if they can show their brilliance in the SLET, NET or SET examination.
Thus, we do not find any merit in this writ petition.
The writ petition is thus dismissed.
The CAN applications being No. 12217 of 2013 and No. 6029 of 2014 filed in connection with the Writ Petition is thus, deemed to be disposed of.
Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be given to the parties as expeditiously as possible.
(Jyotirmay Bhattacharya, J) I agree (Tapash Mookherjee, J)