High Court
Case Details
Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:134654 Court No. - 32 Case :- WRIT - C No. - 26669 of 2025 Petitioner :- Md. Hassin Ahmad And 6 Others Respondent :- Union Of India And 3 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Nabeela Arjumand,Prabhakar Awasthi Counsel for Respondent :- A.S.G.I.,Abrar Ahmad,Shashank Shekhar Singh Hon'ble Chandra Dhari Singh,J. 1. The instant writ petition has been filed seeking for the following relief:- " i. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondent University to forthwith permit the petitioners to undergo the full 5 years course and thereby may award Masters of Vocational Degree in favour of petitioners, in case, if they successfully complete the same in this regard decision be taken by the University forthwith which may communicated to the petitioners." 2. Sri Prabhakar Awasthi, learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that petitioners have taken admission in Bachelor degree course in pursuance of the advertisement dated 02.01.2023 which is appended as Annexure No. 1. As per the said advertisement, there are advertisement for two courses i.e. first for Bachelor Degree course for three years and thereafter Master degree course of two years Vocational Course. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of petitioners submitted that all the petitioners were desirous to complete the course of five years i.e. 3 years Bachelor Degree course and two years for Master Degree course but the University in most abrupt manner has stopped running the said courses. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of petitioners submitted that the petitioners had taken admission in the University for the Vocational Courses with the understanding that there are five years integrated course including the Master degree but the University without assigning any reasons abruptly stopped the admission in the Master Degree course. Petitioners have completed 3 years course with legitimate expectation to get the admission in M.Voc. Course. It is submitted that once University has come up with an advertisement starting the Course and petitioners were admitted to the Course, the University cannot be permitted to withdraw the course without assigning any reasons. The Respondent University cannot be permitted to ruin with the career of petitioners. It is vehemently submitted that in view of the aforesaid facts and submissions, the University may be directed to continue the Master course as per the advertisement. 3.
Legal Reasoning
Per contra, Sri Shashank Shekhar Singh, learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondent nos. 2 to 4 vehemently opposed the instant writ petition and submitted that there are no merit in the instant writ petition and deserve to be set aside. He has placed the instructions dated 07.08.2025 before this Court, which is taken on record. 4. Based upon the instructions dated 07.08.2025, he submitted that as per the advertisement dated 02.01.2025, there are no integrated course of five years but there are two separate courses i.e. first for the Bachelor degree for three years and thereafter, two years for the Master degree for Vocational course. There are separate criteria to get the admission in both the course. There are no force in claim of the petitioners for getting admission automatically in the Master Degree course. In support of his averments, he has referred page nos. 2, 3 and 4 of the said instructions . These are as under:- 2 of 12 “ VOCATIONAL COURSES Course of Study : B. Voc. -Production Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 6 Semesters PTBVA Intake 50 Qualifying Examination: Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination of this University or an equivalent examination with at least 45% marks in agreegate. Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 24 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. Selection Process: Through Combined University Entrance Test (CUET) conducted by NTA. Test Paper Details : Candidates will have to attempt the following Domain/General/Languages Sections of CUET: a) English (Section IA) b) Physics (Section II) c) Chemistry (Section II) d) Biology (Section II) e) Mathematics (Section II) Additional Information : 1. Candidates should register on the CUET website cuet.samarth.ac.in for appearing at the Admission Test. 2. In addition to the CUET website, the candidates have to also register on the AMU website www.amucontrollerexams.com for Admission Form, Counselling and Admission. 3. Only those candidates who have registered for this Course of study on the CUET website and appeared in the Test (as per details given above) shall be eligible for Counselling and Admission. 4. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 5. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 6. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening. 3 of 12 Course of Study : B. Voc. -Polymer and Coating Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 6 Semesters PCBVA Intake 50 Qualifying Examination: Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination of this University or an equivalent examination with at least 45% marks in agreegate. Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 24 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. Selection Process: Through Combined University Entrance Test (CUET) conducted by NTA. Test Paper Details : Candidates will have to attempt the following Domain/General/Languages Sections of CUET : a) English (Section IA) b) Physics (Section II) c) Chemistry (Section II) d) Biology (Section II) e) Mathematics (Section II) Additional Information : 1. Candidates should register on the CUET website cuet.samarth.ac.in for appearing at the Admission Test. 2. In addition to the CUET website, the candidates have to also register on the AMU website www.amucontrollerexams.com for Admission Form, Counselling and Admission. 3. Only those candidates who have registered for this Course of study on the CUET website and appeared in the Test (as per details given above) shall be eligible for Counselling and Admission. 4. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 5. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 6. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening. 7. Students admitted to B.Voc. In Polymer & Coating Technology course shall pay an additional charges of Rs. 15,000/- (included in the Admission Charges) as Development charges. 4 of 12 8. Students promoted to the next higher level i.e. Level 6 & Level 7 will pay additional amount of Rs. 10,000/- for each level as Development Charges. Course of Study : B. Voc. - Fashion Design & Garment Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 6 Semesters FDBVA Intake 50 Qualifying Examination: Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination of this University or an equivalent examination with at least 45% marks in agreegate. Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 24 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. Selection Process: Through Combined University Entrance Test (CUET) conducted by NTA. Test Paper Details : Candidates will have to attempt the following Domain/General/Languages Sections of CUET a) English (Section IA) b) Mathematics (Section II) c) General Test (Section III) Additional Information : 1. Candidates should register on the CUET website cuet.samarth.ac.in for appearing at the Admission Test. 2. In addition to the CUET website, the candidates have to also register on the AMU website www.amucontrollerexams.com for Admission Form, Counselling and Admission. 3. Only those candidates who have registered for this Course of study on the CUET website and appeared in the Test (as per details given above) shall be eligible for Counselling and Admission. 4. Admission to this course is offered to only female candidates. 5. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 5 of 12 6. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 7. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening. Course of Study : M. Voc. - Production Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 4 Semesters PTMVA Intake 20 Qualifying Examination: B. Voc. in Production Technology or its equivalent with at least 55% marks in agreegate. Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 27 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. Selection Process: Through Departmental Test. Test Paper Details : There shall be one objective type of 100 marks. Test Centre (s) : The Departmental Test shall be held at Aligarh (U.P.) only. Additional Information : 1. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 2. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 3. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening. Course of Study : M. Voc. - Ploymer and Coating Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 4 Semesters PCMVA Intake 20 Qualifying Examination: B. Voc. in Ploymer and Coating Technology or its equivalent with at least 55% marks in agreegate. 6 of 12 Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 27 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. Selection Process: Through Departmental Test. Test Paper Details : There shall be one objective type of 100 marks. Test Centre (s) : The Departmental Test shall be held at Aligarh (U.P.) only. Additional Information : 1. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 2. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 3. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening. Note: (i) Students admitted to M.Voc. in Polymer & Coating Technology course shall pay an additional charges of Rs. 15,000/- (included in the Admission Charges) as Development charges. (ii) Students promoted to the next higher level i.e. Level 9 will pay additional amount of Rs.10,000/- for each level as Development Charges. Course of Study : M. Voc. - Fashion Design and Garment Technology Course Details : Duration Course Code 4 Semesters FDMVA Intake 20 Qualifying Examination: B. Voc. in Fashion Design and Garment Technology or its equivalent with at least 55% marks in agreegate. Note: Candidate should refer to ‘Allowed Courses’ under ‘Important information & Rules’ to ascertain whether s/he is permitted to apply for the course of study. Age Limit: The age of the candidate must not exceed 27 years as on 1st July in the year of admission. 7 of 12 Selection Process: Through Departmental Test. Test Paper Details : There shall be one objective type of 100 marks. Test Centre (s) : The Departmental Test shall be held at Aligarh (U.P.) only. Additional Information : 1. No Hostel Accommodation will be provided to the admitted candidates. 2. Students have to go outside Aligarh for skill training on their own expenses. 3. Generally classes will be held in the afternoon/evening.” 5. It is submitted that the criteria for getting admission in both the courses as mentioned above are different and therefore, there is no integrated course as claimed by the petitioners. 6. In rebuttal, Sri Prabhakar Awasthi, learned counsel appearing on behalf of petitioners has placed recommendation of the member of Executive Council which is appended as Annexure no.3 to the instant writ petition. The same is quoted as under:- “The Vice Chancellor Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh-202002 Subject: Regarding Reintroduction of the M. Voc. Program at AMU. Dear Madam, As an elected member of the Executive Council, I fully endorse the request put forth by the students of the Bachelor of Vocation (B.Voc) program, documented in their letter dated January 30, 2025. D.No. 41/CC. Their appeal for the reinstatement of the Master of Vacation (M.Voc) progrem at Aligarh Muslim University reflects a well-reasoned and genuine concern for their academic progression and professional prospects. 8 of 12 The M. Voc program is vital for equipping our students with advanced skills and qualifications, aligning with the goals of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The absence of this program creates a significant gap, limiting opportunities for higher studies and better employability in an increasingly competitive job market. Reintroducing the M. Voc program will not only meet the aspirations of our B.Voc students but also enhance AMU's commitment to fostering excellence in skill-based education, similar to institutions like BHU and IGNOU. I strongly urge the administration to consider this request with the utmost priority and reinstate the program at the earliest. This step will reinforce AMU's reputation as a progressive institution and ensure that our students remain competitive in both academic and professional spheres. Your immediate attention and positive step to this issue will be highly appreciated. Much Thanks & Regards (MUSAVVIR ALI)” 7. It is submitted that during the Session 2022-23, admission to B.Voc. Courses were offered through combined University Entrance Test (CUET) conducted by NTA. Later, on vacant seats admissions were offered by the University on the basis of merit of Class -XII marks. It is further submitted that separate applications were invited for admission to B. Voc. as well as M. Voc. courses. 8. It is submitted that the petitioners were admitted to B. Voc. course of 3 years during (Session 2022-2023) and not in 05 years M. Voc. programme. As per Guide to Admissions, 2022-2023, the eligibility for admission to M. Voc. Courses was B.Voc. Course and the selection was based on merit to be determined through Departmental Test conducted in the University. 9. The learned counsel appeared on behalf of University submitted that a writ of mandamus is a judicial remedy that compel a government official, agency or public authority to perform a specific duty or act that they are legally obligated to 9 of 12 do. In light of aforesaid discussion, the petitioners have failed to make out any case for issuance of writ/directions in the nature of
Decision
mandamus to the respondent as prayed in the writ petition. The instant writ petition is devoid of any merits and may be dismissed. 10. Heard learned counsel appearing on behalf of the parties in length and perused the records. 11. As per advertisement to get the admission in B.Voc. Course for Session 2022-203 are as follows:- “ COURSE OFFERED 1. B. Voc. Polymer and Coating Technology Eligibility:- 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics or Bilogy 45% marks in aggregate. 2. M.Voc. Polymer & Coating Technology 3. B. Voc. Production Technology Eligibility:- 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics 45% marks in aggregate. 4. M. Voc. Production Technology 5. B. Voc. Fashion Design & Garment Technology (Only For Girsl). Eligibility:- 10+2 (45% in any stream). 6. M. Voc. Fashion Design & Garment Technology.” 12. The University offering the admission in B.Voc. programme for Session 2022-2023 to develop a comprehensive study structures on skill development in the field of industry and inculcate students professional ethics or code of practice. The eligibility criteria for admission in B.Voc. programme has been given separately in the advertisement. It is also clear from the 10 of 12 advertisement, there are no scheme to get the admission in M.Voc. programme automatically after passing B.Voc. Course. 13. For getting admission in M. Vocational Course, there are selection processes through departmental test for student who get at least 55% marks in aggregate in B.Voc. Examination and also the maximum age limit for appearing the departmental test no more than 27 years as on 1st July in year of admission. So, the petitioners knew the facts that both courses are separate not integrated course. I do not find force in the arguments that the petitioners had legitimate expectation to get the admission in the M.Voc. course automatically. 14. In view of aforesaid discussions, the issue to be considered that whether this Court may issue a writ of mandamus to the University to re-introduce the Course of M. Voc. It is settled law that the Court would need to balance the University’s autonomy with the interest of students who may have relied on the advertisement. If the Court find that University’s decision to withdraw the course was arbitrary or unreasonable, the Court may issue mandamus to re-introduce the course but if the University had valid reason for withdrawing the course i.e. lack of demand, resource constraints, the Court will not interfere. 15. In the light of aforesaid settled legal position, I have to examine the facts of the case in hand, as on 22.12.2023, the Board of studies of Community College (Wherein B.Voc. And M. Voc. courses were running) recommended to put on hold M.Voc. programmes due to financial constraints which was considered and approved by the Faculty & Engineering Technology in its meeting held on 15.01.2024. The above recommendations were considered & recommenced to Academic council by 65th Admission Committee in its meeting held on 03.02.2024 for approval and the same was approved by the Academic Council of 11 of 12 the University. Academic Council is the highest body of the University to take appropriate decision regarding any affair of the University. 16. I have also perused the recommendation dated 22.12.2023 of the Board of Studies of Community College, minutes of meeting, appraisal of the aforesaid recommendation by Faculty of Engineering Technology on 15.01.2024 and approval of Academic Council all are on record as placed by the learned counsel of the University during arguments. 17. From bare perusal of the aforesaid documents, it is crystal clear that there are two separate courses having two separate criteria for getting admission for any candidates. There are reasonable reasons for putting on hold the M.Voc. Course as discussed above. In view of the aforesaid discussion on law and facts of the instant case, I do not find any reason for issuance of mandamus to the University concerned as prayed in the petition. 18. The instant writ petition is devoid of any merit and accordingly dismissed. Order Date :- 8.8.2025/AKT (Chandra Dhari Singh, J.) Digitally signed by :- ASHOK KUMAR TRIPATHI High Court of Judicature at Allahabad 12 of 12