Telangana High Court says colleges can’t withhold documents even if there are outstanding fees: ‘No lien over certificates’

Her counsel, C Hari Preeth, submitted that the college had withheld her documents and even refused to accept a court notice personally.
The court heard the college had already furnished a provisional certificate and consolidated marks memo to the student following an email from the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), but was still holding the crucial transfer certificate.

Justice K Lakshman’s judgment affirmed a well-established legal principle, citing several previous rulings from the same high court, including D Vaishnavi v State of Telangana and Mahatma Gandhi Law College v. State of Telangana.

The court unequivocally stated that a college “has no lien on the certificates of the petitioner” and cannot withhold them, adding that even if there are outstanding fees, the college must seek legal remedies for fee recovery, such as filing a suit, rather than holding a student’s documents hostage.

In its final directive, the court ordered the engineering college to issue the transfer certificate to the student within two days from the date of receipt of a copy of the order. It also instructed the registrar of Jawaharlal Nehru Technical University, Hyderabad, to ensure that the college complies with the order.