SC stays Bombay high court order, students to be shifted from Sion engineering college

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) had denied the college the right to admit students as it had failed to procure an occupancy certificate from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

The more than 400 students who obtained direct admission in the first and second years to Padmabhushan Vasantdada Patil Pratishthan’s (PVPP) College of Engineering, Sion, will be shifted to other colleges in the vicinity. The move comes after the Supreme Court (SC) put a conditional stay on the Bombay high court (HC) order that allowed the college to conduct admissions for this academic year.

The college, however, said that it has complied with the SC’s conditions and is planning to move court again to allow it to retain its students.(HT file photo)

The state’s Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) has scheduled a counselling session for these students on Thursday.

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) had denied the college the right to admit students as it had failed to procure an occupancy certificate from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). However, the college said that it has complied with the SC’s conditions and is planning to move court again to allow it to retain its students.

PVPP said that they are being treated unfairly. “There are so many other colleges without occupancy certificates, which were let off by the AICTE and the court,” said Appasaheb Desai, general secretary, PVPP, adding that the college management has now paid Rs5 crore due to the BMC, making it eligible for an occupancy certificate. The college has also asked the DTE not to transfer the students to other colleges.

The AICTE had slotted seven colleges from the state, including five from the city and one from Navi Mumbai, under the ‘No Admission’ category, as they didn’t have the requisite land and documents. Subsequently, the colleges moved HC, which stayed the AICTE order, allowing them to admit students, albeit with some conditions.