In a major set back to the State Government, Himachal Pradesh High Court on Saturday quashed the controversial Private Educational Institution (regulatory commission) Act, 2010 saying that State has no power to enact or frame any such act or rules.
A written petition was filed by private universities in the High Court, challenging the Act and constitution of private educational institutions regulatory commission. The division bench of Himachal Pradesh High Court comprising Chief Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice Kuldip Singh gave orders to quash the Act terming it beyond the purview of State legislature.
The petitioner Himachal-Private Universities Management Association (HPUMA) in its petition has said that the Act, 2010 ultra-vires the Constitution of India and consequential declaration that the assessment orders, circulars, notices issued by regulatory commission are without authority of law and quash the same.
The petitioner further said in its petition that the State legislature has no legislative competence to enact the said Act as the field or coordination and determination of standards in institutions for higher education exclusively rest with Parliament. The written petition said that the State legislature has no power to proscribe offences and penalties for enforcing the standards laid down by University Grants Commission (UGC) and All India Council for Teachers Education (AICTE) and other central authorities.
The petitioner even alleged that the rate of fees and penalties prescribed under the Act and rules are extortionate in nature and the mandate of the Act provides for the commission to look after selectively private universities in the State and not all institutions of higher education in the State. Appearing for the State Government, Advocate General Shravan Dogra contended the allegations and defended the validity of the Act. He said that the State alone is competent to ‘regulate universities’ in terms of the State list of the Constitution and the Act stands very much under the provisions of constitution.
Advocate general said that the Union list of the Constitution does not cover the field of ‘regulation of universities’ and thus Parliament has no exclusive power to enact law on the subject of regulation of universities, the power which vests with the State legislature. He cited several Supreme Court judgments in support of his arguments.
The counsel for regulatory commission also contended that the sheer motive of the Act was to protect the interest of the students and ensure quality education to them as private universities indulge in exploitation and profiteering. After hearing the arguments, the division bench ruled that State regulatory commission has been envisaged with powers in relation to matters which are within exclusive domain of Union list and as a result the State legislature is not competent to enact law in that case.
The bench further said that legislature of the State cannot create a regulatory body of its own by enacting a law purported to have been enacted under State list or Concurrent list. State cannot make laws to establish regulatory body with powers to determine standards or penalties for universities in guise of supplementing the activities of Central regulatory authorities and only Parliament could do so.
The division bench also quashed the assessment orders, circulars, notices passed by regulatory commission terming it without any authority of law. It is to be noted the previous BJP Government had always taken credit for enacting the said Act and regulatory commission in place to check the arbitrariness of private universities.