Anna University’s CBCS issue reaches High Court

A division bench comprising Justice M Sathyanarayanan and Justice P Rajamanickam, before whom the plea came up, impleaded Anna University represented by its Registrar and issued notice returnable by February 8.

However, the bench, while refusing to stay the impugned regulations, 2017, said “However, this court, at this stage, is not inclined to grant any interim orders in the light of the settled position of law that the decisions of the academic authorities should not, ordinarily be interfered with, by the courts.”

The plea, moved as a public interest litigation, submitted that the Regulations 2017 have been formulated by Anna University, introducing CBCS, for the students admitted to BE/BTech, for various affiliated institutions and as per the said regulations, it would also apply to all the university colleges of Engineering of Anna University, other than the autonomous colleges from the Academic year 207-18.

The said regulation also applies to the students who are undergoing the studies and suddenly, the entire nomenclature of the examination scheme has been changed against the interest of the students who are undergoing studies in various disciplines.

It was further submitted that previously, if a student had any arrears, he/she can clear it within the academic session and now on account of the introduction of the new Regulations 2017, he/she must wait for the whole year and that apart, the CBCS also puts some form of restriction.

In all fairness, Anna University should have introduced the same, in respect of students who are going to join afresh commencing from the next academic year, the plea added.