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Supreme Court of India

U.P. JUNIOR DOCTORS' ACTION COMMITTEEversusDR. B. SHEETAL NANDWANI AND ORS.

Citation
1990 INSC 263
Decided
31 August 1990
Disposal
Appeal(s) allowed

Holding

The Supreme Court held that the High Court orders were fabricated, set them aside, vacated the admissions made under them, and ordered a CBI investigation.

Summary

The Supreme Court examined a scheme in which a fabricated order allegedly issued by a Single Judge of the Allahabad High Court on 25 May 1990 was used to obtain a subsequent order from the Lucknow Bench directing cancellation of the competitive postgraduate medical entrance exam and admission of candidates on the basis of MBBS marks. Admissions were made in several Uttar Pradesh medical colleges on this basis. The Court found that the original writ petition and order were non‑existent, declared both orders bogus, and set them aside, vacating any admissions granted under them. It held that the affected candidates were not entitled to a hearing under natural‑justice principles given the fraudulent foundation of the orders. The Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the conspiracy and ordered the costs of the appeal to be borne by the respondents.

Issues considered

  • Did a genuine order dated 25.5.1990 exist in Writ Petition No. 5267 of 1990 of the Allahabad High Court?
  • Can admissions granted on the basis of the alleged High Court orders be set aside without affording a hearing to the candidates?
  • Should the Central Bureau of Investigation be directed to investigate the alleged fraud?
  • Do principles of natural justice apply to candidates who obtained admission through the fraudulent orders?

Subjects

fake judgmentmedical college admissionspost‑graduate medical courseshigh court ordercentral bureau of investigationnatural justicefraudulent schemejudicial integrity

Judgment

            i
            U.P. JUNIOR DOCTORS' ACTI01\ COMMITTEE
A
             I                  i·.
               DR. B. SHEET AL NA!\D\\ At\! AND ORS

                                AUGUST -11. \''911

B          [RANGANAT\-1 MISRA AND KULDIP SINGH. JJ]
            '


          M~lfical   Co!legcs-i)ost Graduate Courses-Admission-Fake
    order in a non-existent writ petition produced before High Court for
    securin/J directions regarding ad111issio11-High Courr directing cancel-
    lation of scheduled con1petiti1'e extuni11ario11 and directing ad111ission on
    the basis of marks obtained in M.B.B.S.-Directions by Supreme
c   Court--tAdn1issions granted on the basis of M. B. B. S. results racated-
    Enquiry by ('entra/ Bureau of Investigation.

          On the basis of a fake order, in a non-existent .writ petition, said to
    have been passed by a Single Judge of the Allahabad High Court on
D   25.5.1990, some persons obtained an order dated 4.6.1990 from the
    I .ucknow Bench of the High Court which directed cancellation of the
    scheduled competitive admission examination to the Post-Graduate
    Medical Courses in the Medical Colleges of the State of Uttar Pradesh
    and granted admission on the basis of the marks obtained in the
    M.B.B.S. Exams. Some admissions were secured in the medical colleges
E   of the State on the basis of' the High Court's orders. Against the High
    Court's' orders. the U .P. Junior J)octors' Action <:ommittee has prefer-
    red this .appeal by special leave.
            j
          Allowing the appeal, this Court,

F         HELD: J. l Purity of the judicial stream should not be allowed to
    be polluted by a clandestine move and citizens should not be misled by
    artions o~ the conspirators.

          1.2 There is a deep-seated conspiracy which brought about the
    fake order from Allahabad High Court and on the basis thereof a subse-
G   quent direction has been obtained from the Lucknow Bench of the same
    High Court. The first order being non-existent is declared to be a bogus
    one. The second order made on the basis of the first order is se~ aside as
    having been made on the basis of misrepresentation. Consequently,
    those who have taken admission on the b•sis of such orders, that is on
    the basis of the M.B.B.S. result without going through a selection              •-
H   examin3tion, cannot be allowed to continue in the Post-(;raduate

                                         130
              DOCTORS' COMMI1TEE v. B.S. NANDWANI [MISRA, l.]               131

     Courses. Accordingly, admissions, if any. made on the basis of orders
     of the High Court shall stand vacated. [133F-G; l34A)                        A

          2. Though the persons who have taken admission on the basis of
     the High Court's order are not before this Court yet the circumstances
     in which such benefit bas been taken by them do not justify attraction of
     the application of rules of natural justice of being provided an             B
     opportunity to be heard. [133G-H)

          3. Appropriate investigation should be done by the Central
..   Bureau of Investigation and the persons behind the deep-seated fraud
     should be brouglit to book without any delay. [134C]

           Dr. Dinesh Kumar v. M.L.N. Medical College, Allahabad,                 c
     [1987] 4 S.C.C. 459; and State of Bihar v. Dr. Sanjay Kumar Sinha,
     A.I.R. 1990 SC 749, cited.

           CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Interlocutory Applica-
     tion No. 1of1990.                                                            D
                                         IN
           Civil Appeal No. 4444 of 1990.

          From the Judgment and Order dated 25.5.1990 of the Allahabad
     High Court in C.W.P. No. 5267of1990.                                         E

           D.K. Garg and Pradip Misra for the Appellants.

           The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

           RANGANATH MISRA, J. Leave is granted to the petitioners                F
     who were not parties before the High Court in Writ Petition No. 5267
     of 1990 to file the special leave petition. The Registry shall, therefore.
     consequently register this special leave petition. Special leave is
     granted.

          On. 25.5.1990, a learned Single Judge of the Allahabad High             G
     Court is said to have made an order in Writ Petition No. 5267 of 1990.
     That brief order for convenience is extracted below:

                 "It has been brought to the notice of the Court that the
                 opp. parties have violated the time schedule framed by
                 Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Dr. Dinesh Kumarv.          H
    132         SUPREME COURT REPORTS                [1990] Supp. I S.C.R.

                M.L.N. Medical College, Allahabad, [1987) 4 SCC 459 in
A
                organising the competition to be held on 27.5.90 by Luck-
                now University for admissions in Post Graduate Medical
                Courses in the State Medical Colleges. The Hon'ble
                Supreme Court has recently warned in the case of State of
                Bihar v. Dr. Sanjay Kumar Sinha, AIR 1990 SC 749 that
B               "Everyone including the States, the Union territories and
                other authorities running Medical colleges with Post
                Graduate Courses are bound by our order and must strictly
                follow the same schedule". For violating its orders, the
                Hon'ble Supreme Court hoped that "there would be no
                recurrence of it but we would like to administer a warhing
                to everyone that if it is brought to our notice at any time in
c               future that there has been violation, a serious view of such
                default shall be taken.

               , Keeping in view the above observations the opposite
                 parties are strictly directed not to hold the competitive
D                examination scheduled on 27th May, 1990 and admit the
                 petitioners in Post Graduate Medical Courses in the pre-
                 sent session on the basis of marks obtained in MBBS
                 Course as has been done for MOS Courses.

                The Writ Petition is allowed with no order as to costs."
E
          On the basis of that order and relying upon the terms thereof, a
    learned Single Judge of the Lucknow Bench of the High Court made
    an order on 4.6.90 directing that steps be taken on the basis of the
    direction direction made in the order dated 25.5.90 for giving admission
    to candidates in P.G. Courses. The net result of these two orders is that
F   the Selection Examination for filling up of the seats in the Post Graduate
    Medical Courses of the seven medical colleges in U.P. has been can-
    celled and a direction has been issued to the State Government to grant
    admission on the basis of M.B.B.S. results.

          This Court by order dated 2 lst August, 1990 directed the
G   Registrar of the Allahabad High Court to transmit the record wherein
    order dated 25.5.90 is said to have been made. The Registrar in his
    letter dated 22nd August, 1990, to this Court in response to the direc-
    tion has staied that:
                                                                                 ~-

                "there is no such case as writ No. 5267 of 1990 Dr. B.
H               Sheetal .'Vandwani v. State and Others, and no judgment
               DOCTORS' COMMITTEE v. B.S. NANDWANI {MISRA, J.l            133

                  was delivered by Hon'ble Mr. Justice Anshuman Singh on
                  25.5.90 in the said case. The file is sent to you through
                  special messenger and you arc requested to kindly return
                  the file after the Hon'ble Court's perusal.

                  It is further submitted that fake judgment was said to have
                  been produced before different Medical Colleges purport" B
                  ing to have been delivered by Hon'ble Mr. Justice Anshu-
                  man Singh, J. on 25.5.1990 in Writ Petition No. 5267 of
                  1990 directing the opposite parties not to hold competitive
                  examinations scheduled on 27.5 .90 and admit the petitio-
                  ners in Post-Graduate Medical Course in the present
                  session on the basis of the marks obtained in M.B.B.S.
                  Course. In 'Northern India Patrika' (Allahabad Edition) C
                  dated 11.8.90 this matter was published with the heading
                  'Bogus Judgment aborts entrance Exam' and only then it
                  came to the notice of the Hon'ble Court and ihe Hon'ble
                  the Chief Justice took up the matter and directed that a
                  CID enquiry be instituted. On the direction ofHon'bleihe I)
                  Chief Justice the Government has been moved to gei ihe
                  matter investigated by CID."

             From the report it is manifest that a fake order in a non-existent
       writ petition was produced before the Lucknow Bench of the Aliaha-
       bad High Court for securing the order dated 4.6.90. It also transpires E
       that on the basis of alleged order dated 25 .5 .90 and the subsequent
       order of 4.6.90 some admissions have been secured in some of the
       medical colle'geS. Those who have taken admission on the basis of suth
       orders, that is on the basis of the M.B.B.S. result withoiii gt1ifig
       through a seiection examination cannot be allowed to coiitiriile ifi the
       Post Graduate Courses. We are satisfied that there is a deel>"seaied F
       conspiracy which brought about the fake order from Allahabad, ihe
       principal seat of the High Court and on the basis thereof a subsequeht
       direction has been obtained from the Lucknow Bench of the same
       High Court. The first order being non-existent has to be declared to be
       a bogus one. The second order made on the basis of the first order has
       to be set aside as having been made on the basis of misrepresentaiinn. G
       We are alive to the situation that the persons who have taken admis-
       sion on the basis of the M.B.B.S. results are not before us. The
       circumstances in which such benefit has been taken by the candidates
....   concerned do not justify attraction of the application of rules tif
       natural justice of being provided an opportunity to be heard, At any
       rate now that we bave at the instance of the U .P. Goverrilnelit tlfdefed H
    134            SUPREME COURT REPORTS              l 1990) Supp. 1 S.C.R.

A   the selection examination to be held, admission on the basis of
    M.B.B.S. results cannot stand. We accordingly direct that admissions,
    if any, on the basis of M.B.B.S. results granted after the impugned
    orders of the High Court shall stand vacated and the Principals of the
    medical colleges of U .P. are directed to implement the direction forth-
    with. A copy of this order shall be communicated to each of the Princi-
B   pals of the seven medical colleges in the State of U .P. for compliance.

          The report of the Registrar of the High Court of Allahabad
    indicates that the Criminal Investigation Department of the State has
    been asked to investigate into the matter. We are of the view that
    appropriate investigation should be done by the Central Bureau of
c   Investigation and persons behind .this deep-seated fraud should be
    brought to book without any .delay. Purity of the judicial stream
    should not be allowed to be polluted by such a clandestine move and
    citizens should not be misled by actions of the conspirators. We, there-
    fore, direct that the Central Bureau of Investigation shall st,ep in forth-
    with and complete the investigation within two months and provide a
D   copy of the report containing the result of the investigation to this
    Court. A copy of the report shall simultaneously be submitted to the
    learned Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court. The appeal is
    allowed ,with costs. As and when the respondents who ~re said to be
    petitioners in writ petition No. 5267 of 1990 -are identified shall be
    made to pay the costs of this appeal which we assess at Rs. 10,000. Out
E   of the costs as and when recovered, the appellants shall be entitled to a
    sum of Rs.3,000 and the remaining sum of Rs.7,000 shall be paid to the
    Supreme Court Legal Aid Committee.

    T.N.A.                                                   Appeal allowed.


             ; I


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