The Madras High Court on Wednesday criticised University Grants Commission (UGC) for merely issuing circulars since 2013 prohibiting State universities from offering their programmes through franchise agreements with private coaching centres and not following up on the issue seriously to ensure that the instructions were implemented in letter and spirit.
Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana expressed her displeasure over the inaction of UGC while dismissing a batch of cases seeking a direction to Bharathiyar University in Coimbatore to conduct examinations for students admitted in various courses offered through private educational institutes in Chennai, Madurai, Thoothukudi, Salem, Erode and Krishnagiri.
“It is to be stated that the responsibility of the UGC does not end with issuing circulars and public notices but it extends to the follow-up action also as the same concerns the life of the students. But, in the instant issue, though the UGC had issued circulars and public notices, it failed to take follow-up action with the university.
“The university also, unmindful of the circulars, emboldened to renew the franchise with institutions like the petitioners. In the result, the students, who are in the mid-way of their academic courses, are stranded.
“The UGC should have more responsibility in its deeds. It is apathetic that the UGC had turned blind eye to the misdeeds of the university,” the judge said.
She pointed out that the UGC as well as the Supreme Court and various High Courts across the country had frowned upon the State universities time and again for continuing the practice of entering into franchise agreements with private institutes outside their territorial limits and offering courses mostly through distance eduction programme.
In so far as Bharathiar University was concerned, the Act under which it had been established in 1981 clearly stated that its territorial jurisdiction extended only to areas within Coimbatore, Nilgiris and Erode districts. Therefore, the Memorandum of Understandings signed with institutes in Chennai, Madurai and other places could not be accepted, the judge added.
The petitioner institutes had admitted students in courses such as BBA and B.Com (professional accounting).
