CHENNAI: The right of minority institutions under Article 30 of the Constitution is absolute and any regulation interfering with their right of administration would not be applicable to them. In fact, such regulations would be violative of Article 30(1) of the Constitution, the Madras High Court has ruled.
A division bench comprising justices D Murugesan and Vinod K Sharma gave the ruling on Wednesday while allowing a batch of writ petitions from the Forum of Minority Institutions and Associations and others seeking to declare clause 3 of the Annexure to the UGC Regulations 2000, which prescribed minimum qualification for appointment and career advancement for teachers in universities and colleges.
The colleges run by the petition er association filled up the vacancies in teaching staff and when approval for the same was sought, the universities concerned refused to grant it on the ground that the Selection Committee was not constituted in accordance with the UGC Regulations 2000.
The authorities concerned submitted that the regulations under challenge were mainly to ensure the excellence of educational institutions. Allowing the petitions, the bench observed that once the right of appointment of teachers was treated to be the right of the administration, which was not even disputed by the respondents, no other conclusion than the one that the impugned regulations would not apply to minority institutions, could be arrived at.
Various judgments of the Supreme Court had upheld the right of minority institutions to select teaching staff of their own choice, the bench pointed out and held
that the regulations for constitution of a selection committee should not be applicable to minority institutions. It also directed the authorities concerned to approve the selection made by the minority institutions without reference to clause 3 of the regulations subject to the selected candidates fulfilling other qualifications, experience, etc.