CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has quashed a letter issued by Madhusudan Law University (MLU), Cuttack which demoted the permanent affiliation of Gangadhar Mohapatra Law College, Puri to a provisional status. The court ruled that MLU’s action has no legal basis.
The college, established in 1981, was affiliated to Utkal University since 1996 for its LLB course with 320 seats. In 2021, the Madhusudan Law University was established and all government and private law colleges were shifted to its affiliation.
The governing body of the college had filed a petition challenging MLU’s letter which declared its affiliation as provisional. The division bench comprising Justices Dixit Krishna Shripad and Mruganka Sekhar Sahoo said there is no provision that confers such power upon the University that can declare the ‘permanent affiliation’ granted by Universities, to become ‘provisional affiliation’.
“The Law University established by notification dated 07.04.2021 cannot outgrow the said notification to become a law unto itself and declare that the permanent affiliation(s) granted by the existing Universities of the State become provisional affiliation(s), which is neither contemplated nor intended in the notification dated 07.04.2021,” the bench ruled.
However, the bench clarified that setting aside of the letter do not in any manner curtail the power of the Law University to ensure/regulate. “It is expected that the petitioner College shall maintain the teaching standards, comply with all the necessities in maintaining such teaching standards,” it ruled.