KSLU Solved Question Papers
Constitutional Law I
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 3
2014 Dec Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 3 Constitutional Law I 2014 Dec Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2014 Dec examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2014 Dec examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2014 Dec examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 13 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1Discuss the rights of minorities to establish and manage the educational institutions.[16]
Answer
For full marks, cover: article 30(1), (1A) and (2); who may claim the right and the State as the unit; the meaning of "establish", "administer" and "of their choice"; the right facet by facet (governing body, teachers, discipline, admissions, fees, medium, recognition and aid, property), each with the case that decides it; aided and unaided institutions; the Right to Education Act; the general test for State regulation; a conclusion.
The provision
Article 30 reads, in substance:
- Clause (1): all minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
- Clause (1A): where the State compulsorily acquires the property of such an institution, the amount fixed must not restrict or abrogate this right. This was added by the Forty-fourth Amendment 1978.
- Clause (2): in granting aid, the State shall not discriminate against an educational institution because it is managed by a minority.
Why the right was given
Education is the main way a community passes on its language, faith and culture to the next generation. If the majority controlled all schools and colleges, a minority could slowly lose its identity. The framers therefore gave minorities a guaranteed right to run their own institutions. The right is couched in absolute terms, unlike most rights in Part III, which carry express grounds of restriction. But the courts have held that it is still subject to regulation in the interest of education itself.
Who may claim the right
The right belongs to a religious or linguistic minority. T.M.A. Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka, (2002) 8 SCC 481, was decided by eleven judges. They held that minority status is decided with reference to the State in which the institution is set up, not India as a whole. The institution must actually have been established by the minority. A minority cannot later claim to administer an institution that someone else founded.
Meaning of the key words
"Establish" means to bring an institution into existence. "Administer" means to manage and conduct its affairs. In The Ahmedabad St. Xaviers College Society v. State of Gujarat, AIR 1974 SC 1389, the Court said the management must be free of control, so that the founders can mould the institution as they think fit. "Of their choice" means any kind of institution: a school, a college or a professional institution, giving religious or general secular education.
The right, facet by facet
1. The governing body. The minority chooses who manages its institution. In St. Xaviers, a Gujarat law required every college to have on its governing body a nominee of the Vice-Chancellor. The Court held that this could not apply to minority colleges, because it would let outsiders control their management.
2. Appointment of teachers. The State may prescribe the qualifications of teachers. But it cannot choose the teachers, or veto a qualified person chosen by the management. In In Re The Kerala Education Bill, 1957, (1959) 1 SCR 995, the Court accepted conditions to maintain standards in aided schools, but warned that conditions destroying the right to administer would be invalid.
3. Discipline and dismissal. The State may require a fair procedure before a teacher is removed and may protect teachers' pay. But it cannot hand over disciplinary control to an outside authority. In All Saints High School, Hyderabad v. Government of Andhra Pradesh, AIR 1980 SC 1042, a law required an outside officer's prior approval before any teacher was dismissed, and gave that officer wide appellate powers. The Court held these provisions invalid for minority schools. The unguided control amounted to taking over management.
4. Admission of students. An aided minority institution may give preference to its own community but must also admit others. In St. Stephen's College v. University of Delhi, AIR 1992 SC 1630, the College gave preference to Christian students. The Court allowed preference up to about half the seats, with the rest on merit, and allowed the College its own interview system. In P.A. Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra, AIR 2005 SC 3226, seven judges held that the State cannot reserve seats or take a quota in unaided minority institutions. Admissions must still be fair, transparent and merit-based, and a common entrance test is allowed.
5. Fees. An institution may fix its own fees to cover costs and plan for growth. But it may not profiteer or charge a capitation fee. Islamic Academy of Education v. State of Karnataka, decided in 2003, provided for committees headed by retired High Court judges to approve fees.
6. Medium of instruction. The minority may teach in its own language. In D.A.V. College v. State of Punjab, AIR 1971 SC 1731, a university that had compulsorily affiliated Arya Samaj colleges tried to make Punjabi the only medium. The Court struck this down. But in Usha Mehta v. State of Maharashtra, (2004) 6 SCC 264, the Court allowed Maharashtra to make Marathi a compulsory subject even in linguistic minority schools.
7. Recognition, affiliation and aid. There is no fundamental right to affiliation or recognition. But they are necessary to make the right meaningful, and the State cannot attach conditions that require giving up the right to administer. Under article 30(2), aid cannot be denied merely because the institution is run by a minority. Reasonable conditions for aid, such as audit of accounts, are allowed.
8. Property. Under article 30(1A), compulsory acquisition of the property of a minority institution must carry compensation that does not destroy the right.
Aided and unaided institutions
T.M.A. Pai Foundation held that an unaided minority institution has the greatest autonomy. The State may regulate only to maintain standards and prevent maladministration. An aided institution accepts public money, so it accepts more regulation. It must also admit a reasonable proportion of students from outside the minority, because article 29(2) applies to aided institutions.
Article 30 and article 29(2) reconciled
Article 29(2) says no citizen may be denied admission to a State-aided institution on grounds only of religion, race, caste or language. Read literally, this would stop an aided minority college from preferring its own community. In St. Stephen's College the Court reconciled the two articles. An aided minority institution may prefer its own students to a reasonable extent, but must admit others on merit for the rest of the seats. In St. Xaviers the Court had earlier said that articles 29 and 30 are not mutually exclusive.
The Right to Education Act
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009 requires schools to admit twenty-five per cent of their entry-class students from weaker sections. In Pramati Educational and Cultural Trust v. Union of India, AIR 2014 SC 2114, a five-judge Bench held that the Act cannot apply to minority schools, whether aided or unaided. Applying it would take away their right to choose their students.
Illustrations
- A State law requires every college to include two government nominees on its governing body. This is invalid for a minority college, because it displaces the management.
- A university requires every college, including minority colleges, to appoint only teachers with a master's degree and a teaching qualification. This is valid, because it maintains standards.
- A State orders an unaided minority engineering college to give half its seats to candidates chosen by the Government. This is invalid after Inamdar.
The general test
The State may make regulatory measures that improve the institution through its own management. It may not make measures that displace the management. Regulation for standards, discipline, fairness and accounts is valid. Taking over control, appointing outsiders to manage, or imposing reservation on unaided institutions is invalid. As T.M.A. Pai put it, there is a right to administer, but no right to maladminister.
Conclusion. Article 30 gives every religious and linguistic minority the right to establish and administer educational institutions of its choice. It also protects their property and bars discrimination in aid. The right covers the governing body, teachers, discipline, admissions, fees, medium and property. The State may regulate standards and prevent abuse, but it cannot take over management or destroy the minority character of the institution. This balance protects minorities while preserving educational excellence.
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