IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
WP(C).No. 26981 of 2009(P)
1. REMYA.V,AGED 21,D/O.V.K.V.NAIR,
... Petitioner
Vs
1. THE REGISTRAR,MAHATMA GANDHI UNIVERSITY,
... Respondent
2. THE CONTROLLER OF EXAMINATIONS,
3. MAHATMA GANDHI UNIVERSITY,
For Petitioner :SRI.P.R.PADMANABHAN NAIR
For Respondent : No Appearance
The Hon'ble MR. Justice P.N.RAVINDRAN
Dated :25/09/2009
O R D E R
P.N.RAVINDRAN, J.
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W.P.(C) No. 26981 OF 2009
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Dated this the 25th day of September, 2009
J U D G M E N T
Heard Sri. P.R.Padmanabhan Nair, the learned counsel
appearing for the petitioner and Sri. T.A.Shaji, the learned standing
counsel appearing for the Mahatma Gandhi University.
2. The petitioner appeared for the 8th semester B.Tech degree
examination in Electrical and Electronics Engineering held in May-
June 2009 by the Mahatma Gandhi University. The results were
published in August 2009. She passed all the papers except the
paper in Power System Analysis. The petitioner has therefore
applied for revaluation of her answer script in Power System
Analysis by submitting Exts.P2 application dated 10.9.2009. The
petitioner has also paid the requisite fee prescribed for revaluation,
as can be seen from Ext.P3. The petitioner submits that she has
passed all the other semester examinations, that if her answer script
in Power System Analysis is revalued, she is sure to secure a pass
and that unless her answer script is revalued expeditiously, she will
be put to serious prejudice. In this writ petition, the petitioner seeks
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a writ in the nature of mandamus commanding the respondents to
revalue her answer script expeditiously and within a time limit to be
fixed by this Court.
3. Sri.T.A.Shaji, the learned Standing Counsel appearing for
the Mahatma Gandhi University submits that petitioner’s answer
script cannot be singled out and revalued as it will lead to loss of
confidentiality. He also submits that as per the Examination Manual,
the University requires 81 clear days from the date of publication of
the results to complete the revaluation process. He further submits
that the petitioner’s application for revaluation will be considered and
her answer script revalued, if her application is in order, within the
aforesaid period.
4. The Examination Manual is not a statutory regulation. It is a
Manual prepared by the University for its guidance. The stipulations
in the Examination Manual cannot in my opinion, operate to the
detriment of students. A Division Bench of this Court has in
University of Kerala v. Sandhya P. Pai (1991 (1) KLT 812) held that
the University should hurry with applications for revaluation without
wasting any time and that unless applications for revaluation are
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expeditiously disposed of, it will cause serious prejudice to the
students. I am therefore of the considered opinion that University
should not wait for the expiry of 81 clear days from the date of
publication of the results to complete the revaluation process.
I accordingly dispose of this writ petition with a direction to the
respondents to complete the revaluation of the answer script
described in Exts.P2 and to communicate the result to the petitioner
within six weeks from the date on which the petitioner produces a
certified copy of this judgment before the Controller of Examinations,
Mahatma Gandhi University.
P.N.RAVINDRAN, JUDGE
vps
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