LexDR. ASHOK SINHA versus THE STATE OF TRIPURA & ORS.
Open in Lexace · Ask the AI about this caseJudgment (excerpt)
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2019] 9 S.C.R.
DR. ASHOK SINHA
v.
THE STATE OF TRIPURA & ORS.
(Civil Appeal No.5708 of 2019)
JULY 19, 2019
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y. CHANDRACHUD AND
INDIRA BANERJEE, JJ.]
Administrative Law: Policy decision – Judicial review –
Medical college – Pursuant to the direction by the High Court,
reconstitution of Society for the Tripura Medical College by the
State Government – Society having its own recruitment rules and a
pay structure – Writ petition by the appellant challenging the
admission procedure and fees charged from the students contending
that these to be at par with other government medical colleges –
Dismissed by the High Court – On appeal, held: Whether the State
government should run the College as a department of the
government depends upon numerous circumstances, including the
availability of resources and the expertise to run a medical college
in the State – High Court held that if the State government were not
to administer the Tripura Medical College as an adjunct of the State,
it should constitute an independent society – State government acting
pursuant to those directions constituted a society with its own
Memorandum and Bye-laws – It is a matter of policy for the State
government to determine the manner in which it should retain
administrative oversight so as to ensure that its interest in the proper
functioning of the Tripura Medical College is duly observed – If
the government has chosen a hybrid model in which a society has
been constituted for the purpose of running the Medical College
while, at the same time, allowing the government some voice in
important policy decisions, this is not an arrangement which can
be questioned in the exercise of judicial review – Thus, the
correctness of a policy decision taken by the State government
cannot be determined – Also, the Court cannot arrive at an a priori
view on the reasonableness of the fees.
[2019] 9 S.C.R. 1066
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CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal no. 5708 of
2019
From the Judgment and Order dated 24.06.2016 of the High Court
of Tripura in W.P.(C) (PIL) No. 7 of 2016
Mrs. Rachana Joshi Issar, Ms. K. Viaijayanthi, Ms. Prerna
Chaturvedi, Advs. for the Appellant.
Shuvodeep Roy, Kabir Shankar Bose, Ms. Varsha Poddar, Vikram
Aditya Nath, Chandan Kumar, Rituraj Biswas, Ms. Sujaya Bardhan,
Rituraj Chaudhary, Satyendra Kumar Srivastav, Advs. for the
Respondents.
The Order of the Court was passed by
DR DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.
1. Leave granted.
2. In an earlier public interest litigation initiated by the appellant, a
Division Bench of the High Court of Tripura, by its judgment dated 30
April 2015, directed the State government to take an administrative
decision within a period of three months with respect to the Tripura
Medical College and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Memorial Teaching Hospital.1
The High Court directed the State government to either reconstitute the
managing committee of the Tripura Medical College to ensure that the
actual administrative control lies in the hands of the Society and not the
government, or alternatively, retain control “with all consequences”.
3. The State, pursuant to the judgment of the High Court,
reconstituted the Society for the Tripura Medical College. The Society
has its own recruitment rules and has formulated a pay structure.
4. A fresh writ petition was filed before the High Court in public
interest by the same petitioner who had moved the earlier proceedings.
The grievance of the petitioner was that despite the earlier directions
nothing had changed. In consequence, he sought to challenge the
admission procedure and the fees charged from the students, contending
that these should be at par with other government medical colleges in
the North East. The writ petition was dismissed by a Division Bench of
the High Court on 24 June 2016, which has given rise to the present
appeal.
1“Tripura Medical College”
DR. ASHOK SINHA v. STATE OF TRIPURA & ORS.
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2019] 9 S.C.R.
5. In response to the proceedings, a counter affidavit has been
filed on behalf of the second and the fifth respondents, namely, the Society
and the Principal of the Tripura Medical College. The affidavit records
that pursuant to the directions of the High Court, the constitution of the
Society was recast. Though there are government nominees, it has
been stated that the affairs of the Society are also run by non-
governmental nomExcerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.