Vijai Bahuguna, J. - (1.) BY means of the present writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution the petitioner prays for the issuance of a writ of certiorari for quashing the order dated 14th of February, 1991, Annexure 12 to the writ petition, passed by the Vice -Chancellor Banaras Hindu University Varanasi. By the impugned order the University has not approved off granting of Junior Research Fellowship of the University Grants Commission to the petitioner. The facts in brief are that the petitioner had' done her Post Graduation in Zoology from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi in 1975, and thereafter she got herself registered as a Ph.D. Scholar in the same University and was awarded Ph.D. Degree in the same subject in the year 1980. After nearly 10 years the petitioner got herself registered as a Ph.D. Scholar for carrying on research work in the subject of "Neuro Endocrine Changes under Influence of certain Indigenous Drugs" in the department of Basic Principles in the Institution of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University. An Advertisement was issued by the Institute of Medical Sciences on 7th of June, 1990 inviting applications for the award of Junior Research Fellowship to persons qualified as per eligibility conditions mentioned in the said notification. The petitioner applied for the award of Junior Research Fellowship and she passed in the test and was approved by the Selection Committee. A letter was issued to the petitioner on 20th December, 1990 informing her that she had been selected for the award of Junior Research Fellowship A copy of the intimation letter dated 20th December, 1990, is annexed as Annexure -10 to the writ petition A perusal of this letter will show that the selection was provisional and subject to the final approval of the University.
(2.) BY the order of the University dated 14th of February, 1991 the petitioner was informed that the award of Junior Research Fellowship to the petitioner was not approved by the Vice -Chancellor as she was already a Ph.D. Degree holder. The petitioner is aggrieved by the order of the Vice -Chancellor disapproving the award of Junior Research Fellowship to her. In the counter -affidavit filed on behalf of the University it is stated that the petitioner had done Ph.D. in the year 1980 and thereafter, after an academic gap of 9 years the petitioner again applied for registration as a Ph.D. Scholar. The Academic Council of the University has laid down the criterion and procedure for the award of Junior Research Fellowship. The stand of the University is that the said facility is not available to students who have already done Ph.D. The Scheme is to provide an opportunity to research students and teachers to undertake advance study and research work for doing either M. Phil or Ph.D. in Sciences and Humanities. The purpose of the scheme is to award Junior Research Fellowship to candidates who are doing research work in a particular field by granting them some financial assistance. It is not the object and purpose of the scheme that the candidates who have already done Ph.D., may again be registered for Ph.D., in some other subject and avail the award of the Fellowship as that would defeat the very object of the scheme. The selection of the petitioner for the grant of Junior Research Fellowship was only provisional and was subject to the final approval of the University. The University contends that the name of the petitioner was recommended in ignorance of the fact that she had already done Ph.D. and as such by a communication dated 14th February, 1991, the petitioner's nomination was disapproved. The selection Committee was not apprised of the fact that the petitioner had already done her Ph.D. and the said fact had not been disclosed by the petitioner in the form submitted by her.
(3.) THE specific stand of the University is that Junior Research Fellowship is not awarded to the students who have already done their Ph.D. The Scheme has been framed by the Academic Council in consonance with the guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission. The policy decision taken by the University does not suffer from any infirmity in Jaw. It is for the University to prescribe the eligibility conditions for the award of Junior Research Fellow and there is no violation of Article 14 of the Constitution by excluding the existing Ph.D. Degree holders from the award of Fellowship. The students, who have already done their Ph.D. form a separate class and as such they cannot claim to have been discriminated by the University in the matter of award of Fellowship for research work. The main object and purpose of the grant of Fellowship is to give some financial assistance to the students who are doing their Ph.D., so that they can do concentrate in the subject. The University has limited funds and as such it cannot be said that by excluding Ph.D., holders the University has acted arbitrarily or unreasonably.;