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TMI Blog2015 (11) TMI 1794X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the Government alone, in exclusion of similar buildings and hostels owned by other private management of self-financing Educational Institutions, is discriminatory and violative of Art.14 of the Constitution of India. 2. The petitioner/Engineering College is a self-financing college, affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University, recognised and controlled by the Kerala Professional Colleges or Institutions (Prohibition of Capitation Fees, Regulation of Admission, Fixation of Non-exploitative fee and other measures to ensure equity and excellence in professional Education) Act, 2006 (for short 'the Act'). It is needless to say, the admission, fixation of fees and allied matters are controlled by the authorities under the said Act. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... not per se amount to discrimination and before considering inequality treatment, the object of legislation has to be considered. The principle of reasonable classification is permissible to the limited extent on grounds such as comity of nations, public interest etc." According to 'Constitution of Laws of India' by H.M. Servai 4th Edition, the doctrine of equal protection of laws mean, the protection of equal laws for all persons similarly situated and a law based on permissible classification fulfils the guarantee of equal protection of laws and is valid, but a law based on impermissible classification violates guarantee under Art.14 of the Constitution of India and is void. In Mohammed Shejat Ali v. State of A.P. (AIR 1974 SC 1631 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... confined" within traditional and doctranise limits". 6. In Bondu Ramaswamy v. Bangalore Development Authority [(2010) 7 SCC 129], the Supreme Court held that Article 14 would apply only when invidious discrimination is meted out to equals and similarly circumstanced without any rational basis or relationship in that behalf. 7. In Deepak Sibval v. Punjab University [AIR 1989 SC 904], the Supreme Court held as follows: "9. It is now well settled that Art.14 forbids class legislation, but does not forbid reasonable classification. Whether a classification is a permissible classification under Art.14 or not, two conditions must be satisfied, namely, (1) that the classification must be founded on an intelligible differentia which dist ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o the public money and it can be said that buildings and hostels constructed and maintained by using public money is exempted from payment of property tax and the people, as a whole, is the beneficiary of this exemption. If property tax is imposed on buildings and hostels owned by the Government, that amount also will be taken from the public fund. More importantly, exemption is given to the institutions, functioning under the administrative control of the Government and to which Governmental auditing of funds and expenditure is made compulsory; whereas , the case of self-financing institutions, such control and auditing of funds are absent. 9. Secondly, the expression 'self financing' itself shows that such institutions are having ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The said Act is a preventive legislation to curb illegality and exploitation in the functioning of the self-financing institutions. Merely on the reason that the receipt of capitation fee is prohibited and the admission and fixation of fee are regulated, it cannot be said that the self-financing colleges are owned or administered by the Government and the financial transactions are subjected to governmental scrutiny. So, such institutions are not entitled to get the privilege of the institution owned and administered by the Government. The petitioner institution is not the creation of a statute; but the functioning of the institute alone is regulated by several statutes, covering diffe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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