October 4, 2011 admin

DESCRIBES DECISION OF CENTRE AS TOTALLY UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND AGAINST THE SPIRIT OF FEDERALISM

CHANDIGARH –  Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal today sought personal intervention of the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to direct the Ministry of Human Resources Development to exclude the universities from all the proposed new laws for higher education and thereafter reframe these bills with the consensus of all the states to maintain the federal structure of our country.
            In a letter to the Prime Minister, Mr. Badal apprised Dr. Singh about the matter of new Higher Education Bills introduced in the Parliament by the Ministry of HRD, namely ‘The Prohibition of Unfair practices in Technical Educational Institutions, Medical Educational Institution and Universities Bill, 2010, ‘The National Accreditation Regulatory Authority for Higher Education Bill, 2010 and Higher Education and Research Bill 2010’. These new Bills were believed to bring reforms in higher education.  However, he was dismayed to learn that under the guise of these new Bills, the Ministry of HRD was trying to take over the constitutional rights of the States, asserted Mr. Badal. 
The Chief Minister sought Dr. Singh’s attention towards the Entry 44 of the Union List and Entry 32 of the State List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.  Entry 44 of the Union List reads “Incorporation, regulation and winding up of corporations, whether trading or not, with objects not confined to one State, but not including universities. Entry 32 of the State List reads “Incorporation, regulation and winding up of corporations, other than those specified in List 1, and universities; unincorporated trading literacy, scientific, religious and other societies and associations, co-operative societies”.
            Mr. Badal further mentioned that the plea of Entry 66 of Union List and Entry 25 of Concurrent List taken by the Ministry of HRD in the 57th meeting of CABE with respect to competence of Parliament on any matter concerning education was misconceived.  Entry 66 of Union List empowered the Central Government only for coordination and determination of standards of institutions of higher education and not Universities.  Further education even if is listed under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List, still does not confer the Parliament to make law for regulation of Universities because these matters are specifically excluded from the legislative competence of the Parliament vide E ntry 44 of the Union List.  In these circumstances, inclusion of Universities under the aforesaid new laws framed for regulation of higher education was totally unconstitutional and also against the spirit of federalism, added Mr. Badal.
 

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