Madras High Court quashes order on communal reservation in colleges

CHENNAI: Madras High Court today quashed a 2012 Government Order on implementing communal reservation in admissions in respect of a city-based Christian autonomous college, saying educational institutions run by minorities need not follow reservation.

The First Bench comprising Chief Justice R.K.Agrawal and Justice M.Sathyanarayanan was allowing a writ petition filed by the Secretary of Loyola College (Autonomous), meant primarily for Catholics, challenging the May 23, 2012 G.O of the Higher Education Department.

The order had prescribed guidelines for admission of students to Under Graduate/Post Graduate Courses in Government/aided/unaided arts and science colleges for the academic year 2012-13 which stipulated among other things filling up 50 per cent of seats by following reservation.

The college contended that prescription of such guidelines in the G.O cannot be legitimately imposed on it since it was a minority educational institution. The right of admission guaranteed under Article 30 of the Constitution to minority institutions was sought to be abrogated by the order.

The G.O was without any Constitutional or statutory basis and the Tamil Nadu Private Colleges (Regulation) Act and Rules framed therein do not empower the Government with any such power to enforce the rule of reservation in the matters of admission in minority educational institutions such as their College, the petitioner had argued.

Concurring with the submissions of the counsel for the college Isaac Mohanlal, the Bench said after the 93rd Constitutional Amendment and as per section 2(d) of Tamil Nadu Act 12 of 2006 by virtue of Article 15(5) of the Constitution, the reservation of seats for Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes for admission to Private Educational Institutions cannot be made applicable to Minority Educational Institutions referred to in Article 30 (1) of the Constitution.

Referring to a Supreme Court verdict, it said that even in respect of aided courses run by minority colleges, there cannot be any direction to follow communal reservation.

The bench made it clear that its order quashing the G.O was with respect to the Loyola College alone.