Dealing with two writ appeals filed by the state government and the Admission & Fee Regulatory Committee (AFRC) seeking a stay of the single-judge order on engineering college fees for 2012-13, the High Court on Monday said that it would issue an order only after going through the order copy of the judge.
A division bench comprising acting chief justice PC Ghose and justice Vilas V Afzulpurkar directed the advocate- general to submit a copy of the full order of the single judge and posted the matter for hearing on Tuesday.
Advocate-general A Sudarshan Reddy sought immediate stay of the implementation of the single judge’s order, saying that some private colleges had already approached the court seeking an increase in the fee in accordance with the single judge order.
S Niranjan Reddy, counsel for the colleges, said they would not insist on immediate implementation of the single judge’s order.
On August 24 justice CV Nagarjuna Reddy, while dealing with a petition files by the AP Private Engineering College Managements Association (APPECMA) and some educational societies and individuals, directed the AFRC to notify a fee of Rs 50,200 for engineering colleges which had not given consent affidavits or undertakings before the AFRC for fixation of fee.
In the writ appeal, the government and AFRC termed the judge’s order as contrary to the law and probabilities of the case.
The order of awarding Rs 50,200 per student for engineering courses of the colleges concerned would amount to ‘profiteering’, they said.
The AFRC, in its report dated August 18, fixed the fee without physical verification of the colleges’ infrastructure.
The government issued a GO ion physical verification of the institutions, hence fixing a fee of Rs 50,200 for colleges which had not responded with relevant data was contrary to law, the government and the AFRC contended.
The judge’s order was also in direct contravention with a Supreme Court’s order in a case, it noted.
Meanwhile, some petitions have been filed by engineering colleges seeking a hike in fee structure and for its inclusion in engineering counselling.
They wanted the court to, forthwith, notify the fee of Rs 50,200 and for conduct of counselling for all engineering institutions.