M.Katju - (1.) THERE is a boy's institution called Allahabad Intermediate College which is a recognised institution under the U. P. Intermediate Education Act. The institution was started in 1910 and has throughout been a boy's institution. The allegation in the writ petition is that for the session 1992-93 the committee of management is going to admit girl students and It is alleged that this is violative of Regulation 8 (1) of Chapter 7 of the U. P. Intermediate Education Regulations which states "Girls shall not be admitted into Boy's Institutions without obtaining prior approval of the Inspector".
(2.) BY means of this petition the petitioners, who claim to be students of this institution, have prayed for a direction to the committee of management of the institution that it be restrained from admitting girl students. I have heard Shri Satish Chaturvedi, learned counsel for petitioner and learned standing counsel for respondent no 2 Counsel for the petitioner has urged that prior approval of the District Inspector of School has not been taken before admitting girl students. On 15-10-92 I had passed an order granting two weeks time to the standing counsel to file a counter affidavit and I made it clear that I would decide the validity of regulation 8. No counter affidavit has been filed. In my opinion regulation 8 of Chapter 7 of the Regulations is arbitrary and hence violative of Article 14 of the Constitution.
(3.) IN my opinion educational INstitutions segregated on the basis of sex are a sign of backwardness, and the sooner this segregation is done away with the better for the country It is my firm belief that all educational institution at all levels should be co-educational. Co-education is healthy and good for the development of the personalities of both boys end girls. If there Is co-education boys and girls will know how to interact with each other in a healthy manner and this will also help them towards social adjustability. IN sexually segregated schools or colleges boys and girls live in inhibited environments, with false notions and fantasies about the opposite sex. Co-education will make children more mature end more realistic. A lot of eve teasing and other such harassment will stop if there is coeducation. Even rowdy boys are likely to improve in a coeducational institution since they may not wish to incur the social disapproval of the young ladies of their class. Similarly girls will get to know the nature of young men better and will learn to interact with them in a healthy manner. At present the situation in most places is that young men and women who have studied in segregated institutions till the age of majority are awkward and often dumbfounded and tongue-tied in each others presence. A young man does not know how to interact with a young lady and behave in her presence and the young lady is terror stricken in the presence of a young man as the has only interacted with her father and brother till then. This segregation leads to several kinds of psychological and social problems and hence it should be done away with. In fact all modern countries have co-education;