Return fee of SC/ST, women students: HC to Patna universities

The state government had said that Rs 287 crore had been reimbursed to the students from whom education and tuition fee had been taken wrongly and more students had to be reimbursed fee paid to the universities.

On May 4, the court, in response to a combined writ petition, had put an interim stay on caste survey, saying the survey was a “census”, which is exclusive domain of Union Parliament. (File Photo)

Patna High Court has taken exception to several universities still charging education fee till masters courses from SC/ ST and women students against the state government’s decision announced on July 24, 2015.

The court has set a deadline of one month to reimburse the fees to students from whom the institutions had wrongly charged it. If the order is not complied with, it would amount to contempt of court and invite derecognition.

Also Read | Nadda faces protest by student activists at Patna College

Responding to a PIL, a division bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S Kumar on July 22 directed “all universities in Bihar to immediately refund the amount, if not already disbursed in terms of directions issued”, as indicated by Director, Education, Bihar, in its affidavit on June 28, 2022.

Story continues below this ad

The state government had said that Rs 287 crore had been reimbursed to the students from whom education and tuition fee had been taken wrongly and more students had to be reimbursed fee paid to the universities.

The court said: “Violation of the order shall tantamount to contempt and humiliation of proceedings for derecognition of the instituton (s) concerned.”

“…We are constrained to take note of the sheer apathy displayed by the state… Equally, we may note that college and university administrations have showcased a striking lack of commitment towards the duty they hold to their students and state…,” the court said.

The petitioner advocates Dinu Kunar and Ritika Rani told The Indian Express:”The matter was pending for a while. But the court has now set a deadline.”

Santosh Singh

Santosh Singh is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express since June 2008. He covers Bihar with main focus on politics, society and governance. Investigative and explanatory stories are also his forte. Singh has 25 years of experience in print journalism covering Bihar, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. ... Read More

In Odisha, Modi mounts ‘loot tantra-vs-bachat utsav’ attack on Congress over GST

India8 hr ago

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday hailed the revised Goods and Services Tax (GST) structures, saying the era of “double bachat (saving) and double kamai (income)” has arrived under the Bharatiya Janata Party rule. Addressing the ' Namo Yuva Samabesh' in Jharsuguda, Modi accused the Congress of indulging in “loot tantra (tactics)” while in power.

View all shorts

Live Blog

PHOTOS