Debangana Ray
Published on June 12, 2022 at 16:32 IST
Two Church bodies in Goa filed a petition before the Bombay High Court in order to nullify the rules issued by the University Grants Commission regarding appointment of staff and faculty in educational institutions run by Minority Institutions.
The bench comprising of Justices MS Sonak and RN Laddha stated that there are enough safeguards in the rules under UGC and Goa University which ensure that the rights of minority communities to administer and establish their own educational institutions guaranteed under Article 30 of the Indian Constitution are not infringed upon.
The petition was filed by the Archdiocesan Board of the Education and the Diocesan society of education.
The petitioners challenged the UGC Rules of 2010, (later amended in 2018) and Goa Statutes for Recruitment of Staff in Affiliated Colleges.
The Bench, in its judgement stated that “The provisions are regulatory, and the regulation ensures the excellence of the teaching staff that is proposed to be selected”
The Court further said that, “Special provisions have been made for minority institutions to ensure that their autonomy and rights to administer educational institutions are hardly affected.”
However, the court struck down a provision regarding appointment of a representative of the Directorate of Higher education in the selection committee for selection of faculty and academic staff.