Vet diploma admission after verdict, says High Court

CHANDIGARH: Acting on a petition alleging that the last date for admission to veterinary and livestock development diploma was extended and qualifying marks in the eligibility entrance test reduced to favour newly set up private colleges, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today made it clear that admission would be subject to result of the writ petition.

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 16

Acting on a petition alleging that the last date for admission to veterinary and livestock development diploma was extended and qualifying marks in the eligibility entrance test reduced to favour newly set up private colleges, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today made it clear that admission would be subject to result of the writ petition.

The Bench comprising Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Gurvinder Singh Gill issued notice of motion to the state and another respondent on the petition filed by Aman and other petitioners through counsel Sardavinder Goyal.

The court was told that prospectus for admission to the two-year diploma course for 2017-18, issued by Hisar-based Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, said admissions were to be made only through an entrance test to be conducted by the university.

It was mentioned that a candidate had to secure a minimum of 35 per cent marks in the entrance test to be eligible for admission. The minimum marks prescribed for Scheduled Caste and in-service candidates were 33 per cent. A merit list of candidates qualifying the entrance test was to be prepared.

A clause in the prospectus made it clear that seats lying vacant in the reserved category due to non-availability of eligible candidates during the first counselling, or which fell vacant subsequently due to any other reason, were to filled up in the second counselling on the basis of a combined merit list.

Admission was not to be made after the second counselling and the seats remaining vacant were to be treated as cancelled. The second counselling was held on October 18 and the classes started on October 31.

“With a view to favour newly set up private colleges, where a number of seats remained vacant, not only was the last date for admission extended, but qualifying marks in the eligibility entrance test reduced to 25 per cent for the general category and 23 per cent for Scheduled Caste and in-service candidates as well,” Goyal submitted.

He added that the university lacked the power to extend the last date or lower merit criteria for admission even if the seats were lying vacant.

The Bench was told that the university had been following the same process in previous years. It had lowered criteria for admission from 40 per cent to 35 per cent for all categories and from 38 per cent to 33 per cent for Scheduled Caste category.