IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT:- THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE C.N.RAMACHANDRAN NAIR & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE K.VINOD CHANDRAN TUESDAY, THE 13TH DECEMBER 2011 / 22ND AGRAHAYANA 1933 W.P.(C).No.32945 of 2011(R) ------------------------ PETITIONER:- ------------ MODEL TECHNICAL HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL PROTECTION FORUM, KALOOR, KOCHI - 682 017, REPRESENTED BY ITS CHAIRMAN MOIDEEN SHAH. BY ADV. SRI.JOSHI N.THOMAS RESPONDENTS:- -------------- 1. STATE OF KERALA, REPRESENTED BY ITS CHIEF SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT, SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - 695 001. 2. HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM, COCHIN - 682 031, REPRESENTEDE BY ITS REGISTRAR GENERAL. 3. PRINCIPAL SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT OF KERALA, HIGHER EDUCATION (J) DEPARTMENT, SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695 001. 4. THE DIRECTOR, INSTUTUTE OF HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT FOR ELECTRONICS, PRAJOE TOWERS, VAZHUTHAKADU, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695014. 5. THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, CIVIL STATION, KAKKANADU, COCHIN - 682 020. 6. MODEL TECHNICAL HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL, KALOOR, KOCHI-682 017, REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL. R1, R3 & R5 BY SENIOR GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI.GEORGE MECHERIL. THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 13/12/2011, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:- WP(C).NO.32945 OF 2011-R APPENDIX PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:- --------------------- EXT.P1 - TRUE COPY OF AUTHORIZATION LETTER DATED 28.11.2011. EXT.P1(a) - TRUE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXT.P1. EXT.P2 - TRUE COPY OF GO(MS).173/90/H.Edn. DATED 6.7.1990, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT. EXT.P3 - TRUE COPY OF THE G.O.(MS).NO.73/90/EDN. DATED THIRUVANANTHAPURAM 8.5.90 ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT. EXT.P4 - TRUE COPY OF GO(MS) NO.249/90/H.EDN. DATED THIRUVANANTHAPURAM 12.10.90 ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT. EXT.P5 - TRUE COPY OF MEMORANDUM DATED 22.1.2010 SUBMITTED BY PARENT TEACHERS ASSOCIATION ADDRESSED TO THE HON'BLE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION. EXT.P6 - TRUE COPY OF LETTER DATED 12.4.2011 SUBMITTED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT TO THE 1ST RESPONDENT. EXT.P7 - TRUE COPY OF LETTER DATED 10.8.2011 SUBMITTED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT TO THE HON'BLE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION. EXT.P8 - TRUE COPY OF LETTER DATED 10.8.2011 SUBMITTED BY THE PRINCIPAL OF 6TH RESPONDENT TO THE HON'BLE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION. EXT.P9 - TRUE COPY OF THE NEWS ITEM IN MATHRUBHUMI DAILY DATED 3.11.2011. EXT.P9(a) - TRUE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXT.P9. EXT.P10 - TRUE COPY OF LETTER DATED 16.11.2011 SENT BY SHRI.V.R.KRISHNA IYER, FORMER JUDGE OF THE SUPREME COURT TO THE CHIEF MINISTER, KERALA. EXT.P11 - TRUE COPY OF NEWS ITEM IN INDIAN EXPRESS IN CITY EDITION DATED 16.11.2011. EXT.P12 - TRUE COPY OF MEMORANDUM DATED 19.11.2011 SUBMITTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF P.T.A. TO THE CHIEF MINISTER OF KERALA. EXT.P13 - TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER NO/JSP/CM-3976/2011 DATED 19.11.11 ISSUED BY THE 5TH RESPONDENT. WP(C).32945/2011 - 2 - EXT.P13(a) - TRUE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXT.P13. EXT.P14 - TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 19.11.2011 SENT BY THE PRINCIPAL, 6TH RESPONDENT SCHOOL TO THE CHIEF MINISTER OF KERALA. RESPONDENT'S EXHIBITS:- ---------------------- NIL. (true copy) C.N.Ramachandran Nair & K.Vinod Chandran, JJ. ---------------------------------------- W.P.(C).No.32945 of 2011 ----------------------------------------- Dated this, the 13th day of December, 2011 JUDGMENT C.N.Ramachandran Nair,J.: This is a public interest litigation, filed by the Model Technical Higher Secondary School Protection Forum, for cancelling the Government orders allotting the land and building where the Law College run by the National University of Advanced Legal Studies was functioning to the High Court for starting Family Court, for establishing the ADR Center, for setting up of Juvenile Court, etc. The land involved is just one acre with a two storied building and two sheds therein. 2. We have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and also the Senior Government Pleader, who took notice for the first respondent, at the admission stage. 3. The school has been running in the same premises and with the same facilities for the last twenty years. The building and land now allotted by the Government to the High Court on request by the Acting Chief Justice was with the National University of Advanced Legal Studies, where they were running the Law College. The NUALS shifted the Law College to the new premises, which is 10 acres of land, WP(C).32945/2011-R - 2 - assigned to it by the State Government at Kalamasserry. When NUALS vacated the premises, the High Court impressed upon the Government the pressing need for land and building to shift the Family Court now running in deplorable conditions in the 1st Floor of a rented building and the need to construct an ADR Centre for Legal Services Authority and to set up a Juvenile Justice Court. The State Government on being satisfied that the request of the High Court is genuine and considering the emergent need, the land and buildings were allotted to the High Court. The petitioner does not dispute the genuineness of the claim made by the High Court, based on which the land and buildings are allotted to it by the Government for setting up the facilities above stated. However, the petitioner's case is that the school with the increase in students needs more land for setting up an Auditorium and an Assembly Hall for the students. 4. After hearing the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Senior Government Pleader, what we feel is, on a relative consideration of the need of the High Court for setting up Courts and also the need of the Technical Higher Secondary School for more land, the High Court's claim outweighs that of the school's. In the first place, the Family Court is presently run in the 1st Floor of a rented building and the High Court brought to the notice of the Government WP(C).32945/2011-R - 3 - the deplorable condition in which the Family Court is running. Similarly, there is no space for setting up a Juvenile Court and also ADR Centre, for which funds are already sanctioned by the Central Government. A specific condition for allotment of funds for ADR Centre is that the funds should not be utilised for acquisition of land, which means that the Legal Services Authorities should depend upon the State Government for allotment of land. 5. Considering all these, we do not think the preferential claim of the school over the need of the High Court for space is justified. We, therefore, reject the challenge against the allotment of land by the State Government to the High Court. 6. The Model Technical Higher Secondary School is run on the side of a very busy road and near to the bus stand and there can be no dispute that the environment is not conducive for academic pursuits. In our view, not only this school, but several other educational institutions run on busy road sides in the city of Kochi need to be shifted to peaceful areas with larger extent of land. Several educational institutions such as Schools and Colleges run in the city were started decades back when Ernakulam was a small town. However, in the course of the last few years, the town which is mainly a trading centre has become so congested and polluted leaving the WP(C).32945/2011-R - 4 - environment and atmosphere thoroughly non-conducive for academics. It is high time the State Government as a matter of policy to consider shifting of educational institutions from the town, particularly the Model Technical Higher Secondary School, which is run by the Institute of Human Resources Department, a Government organisation for which petitioner demands more land, to peaceful areas in the periphery of the town. Therefore, in our view, the petitioner should make a request to the State Government for allotting land in the periphery of the town for shifting the school for being run in a peaceful atmosphere for the students to pursue their studies. Government can certainly utilise the very expensive commercial land now occupied by the school for other purposes or even sell it for commercial needs in the open market and raise funds for setting up the school in a larger area outside the city limits. The writ petition is dismissed with the above observation. C.N.Ramachandran Nair, Judge K.Vinod Chandran, vku/- Judge.