- (1.) THE instant writ petition is yet another case seeking to bring to the fore serious administrative & financial irregularities against the present administrative set up of the J.N.V. University, Jodhpur. Petitioner seeks direction to the Central Bureau of Investigation to seize the entire papers, accounts & material relating to the Rajasthan Pre- Engineering Test 2003, hereinafter referred to as "RPET-2003", conducted by the respondent No.3 Dr. Naseem Bhatia Vice Chancellor JNV University Jodhpur, Professor Rajesh Mathur and Shri Ravi Saxena, both members of the Faculty of Engineering, JNV University, Jodhpur and to investigate the entire matter and submit its detailed report in a time-bound programme.
(2.) IT is averred that admissions to the First Year of BE/BTEXT/BR Degree Courses for the Sessions 2003-04 in various Engineering Colleges of the State of Rajasthan, were to be made on the basis of Pre-Engineering Test and so the State government authorized the respondent No.2 i.e. J.N.V. University Jodhpur to conduct the RPET-2003. The Test was organized by the Centralized Admission Co-ordination Committee (in short "CACC") under the chairmanship of fourth respondent Dr. Naseem Bhatia Vice Chancellor of the UNV University, respondent No.5 Professor Rajesh Mathur Co-ordinator and Ravi Saxena, a Member of the RPET 2003 Cell. The test was conducted at various places in the State of Rajasthan. A sum of Rs.18.50 crores was collected from the students, who appeared at the test. for keeping the fund, separate new Bank Accounts were opened in different Banks in the name of Co-ordinator RPET-2003. Ordinarily, the amount ought to have been deposited in the University Account in the University Bank, but respondent No.5 with the approval of respondent No.4, for ulterior purpose, opened the account in separate Bank. The handful staff was engaged for discharging the functions of the RPET-2003 without fixing the norms and thereby, the honorarium was paid to them at an exorbitant rate. The respondents No.4 & 5 were responsible to submit a true and correct account to the University as well as to the State Government but the same was not done almost for a period of one year. Thus, the matter was agitated in the meeting of the Syndicate held on 21.9.2004. The Syndicate was required to consider the saving of the RPET-2003 to be transferred in the Pension Fund. The Vice-Chancellor assured the Syndicate members that the account shall be placed before the Syndicate at the earlier but when the words were not kept, the members in subsequent meetings continued to agitate the issue and also made demand for disciplinary action against the Coordinator of the RPET-2003. In the meeting of the Syndicate held on 1.10.2004, the Vice-Chancellor made a statement that the account has been received but she was not in position to give full details of the account. Neither the account was placed before the Syndicate nor disciplinary action was initiated against the Coordinator and the Vice-Chancellor continued to defend fifth & sixth respondents. IT was specifically agitated that the University had received about 18.50 crores from the RPET-2003 out of which Rs.14,80,00,000/- have been paid to the private Engineering Colleges but there was no account of the difference of the amount. IT was apprehended that a huge amount has been misappropriated. IT was also pointed out that the amount was being lavishly spent for renovation of the office of the vice Chancellor and other officials concerning RPET-2003. The costly vehicles were purchased. the huge amount was misappropriated against the expenditure on Tent. The saving of Rs.88,54,000/- was shown but no details of he same were given. The proceedings of the Syndicate appeared in the newspaper viz., Rajasthan Patrika dated 19th Dec. 2004, wherein details of misuse of funds have been reported in detail. A copy of the Newspaper cutting has been placed on record as Ex.6. The petitioner having failed before the authorities, has approached to this Court by way of instant petition. It was brought to the notice of this Court that in another writ petition being D.B. Civil Special Appeal No.188/2002, wherein serious allegations have been made against University authorities as to misuse of the funds of the University, this Court by order dated 25.8.2004 had directed the Principal Secretary Finance, Government of Rajasthan to depute a team of officer to look into the record & make a report to this Court. Pursuant to the directions of this Court, the State Government constituted a Committee consisting of Director Treasury & Accounts Jaipur, Joint Director Local Fund Audit Department Jodhpur, Assistant Accounts Officer Local Fund Audit Department Jodhpur and Assistant Accounts Officer Local Fund Audit Department, Jaipur. The said Committee had already made two reports to the court. The Committee also reported non-cooperative attitude of the authorities of the J.N.V. University. Thus, considering all the facts and circumstances of the case, this Court by order dated 22.03.2005 set up a Committee as follows: "Pending consideration, the prayer made by the petitioner to get the matter investigated by the CBI, we consider it appropriate that the committee already constituted by the Finance Secretary to look into the allegations made in the instant petition and submit a preliminary report. The said committee shall be presided by Shri M.D. Vaishnav, Registrar Administration, Rajasthan High Court, Jodhpur. The Registrar General, Rajasthan High Court is directed to obtain appropriate approval from the Hon'ble Chief Justice for permitting to take services of Mr. Vaishnav as indicated in the order." The Committee submitted a report on 12.08.2005 in a sealed cover. The report runs in 25 pages accompanied by 15 Annexures running in 52 pages. The conclusion of the report is extracted as follows: "CONCLUSION It was the function of the Centralised Admission Coordination Committee RPET-2003 to frame rules and regulations but the same was not done. It was resolved in CACC meting to authorize chairman RPET-2003 to take necessary action regarding smooth conduct of RPET. It seems, in the light of this resolution, RPET cell member Shri Ravi Saxena and Co-ordinator Sh. Rajesh Mathur proposed action on adhoc basis and got approval of the Chairperson in most of the cases. For smooth conduct of RPET, activities should have been assessed, planned and rules & regulation should have been assessed, planned and rules & regulation should have been framed in consultation with CACC. But no rules and regulations were framed and followed. The purchases and expenditure seems to have been done in an arbitrary manner. In purchase of Stores (including services) upon tender procedure was avoided although there was ample time. This is despite of the fact that intimation for conducting RPET-2003 was given well in time to Jai Narayan Vyas University, Jodhpur. A false urgency was created. Even the limited tender procedure was not followed properly. In payment of honorarium, conveyance allowance, travelling allowance etc. govt. rules and scales prescribed were ignored and huge payments were made arbitrarily. Excessive and arbitrary payment is also evident in secret expenditure because almost double amount of expenditure as compared to RPET-2004 conducted by Director, Technical Education, Jodhpur has been incurred. RPET-2003 cell was not a permanent establishment, hence, purchases of fixed assets such as Toyoto Qualis AC Vehicle, LG. Split Air Conditioner, furniture, and computer hardware etc. should have been avoided alongwith expenditure incurred on decorating the Chairman's chamber/office. These funds were not meant for this purpose. The payment made for unused tent facility was wasteful expenditure in lacs. Here it would not be out of context to mention that where University rules were not available or are silent GF & AR (established and time tested rules of Govt. of Rajasthan) should have been followed, in the utilization of public money. Accounting system followed and maintenance of record is also quite poor. It does not give clear picture of account position of various private and government engineering colleges. Advance amount to Shri Rajesh Mathur, Coordinator needs clarifications. The purchases made and the expenditure incurred to the tune of above one crore of rupees during the RPET-2003 programme seems to have been done in an arbitrary & autocratic manner and in gross violation of the basic provisions of GF&AR. It smells of the malafide intention of the University Authorities who practically seem to have indulged in wrongful gain or wrongful loss to the public money. Further, some of the record of expenditure and the Register produced before the committee prima facie shows that the same has been prepared afresh and after passing of the Judicial Order dt.22.3.2005 in the case No.1670/2005 Mahesh Chandra Tak vs. State of Rajasthan. Various cutting/overwriting in some record further indicates doubts in the genuineness of the expenditure." Learned Additional Advocate General by way of filing an application made a demand for copy of the Report expressing the intention of the State Government to have an audit enquiry in relation to the financial irregularities against the JNV University, Jodhpur by the Finance Department (Audit). The prayer was opposed by Mr.M.C. Bhoot, learned counsel for the petitioner. If was submitted that an attempt has been made not only to eyewash but also to whitewash the Report submitted by the Committee set up by the court. It was also submitted that this Court directed enquiry into the administrative & financial irregularities, alleged to have been committed by the University authorities in the matter of holding of RPET Examination, pending adjudication of the ultimate prayer for investigation by the CBI, by a Committee which is of quasi judicial nature being headed by the Registrar of the High Court, an officer of the status of District Judge. Such a report cannot be permitted to be discredited. It was further submitted that the other member of the Committee is a senior most Accounts Officer of the State i.e. Director (Treasury) and, as such, instead of giving a copy of the Report to the State Government for administrative enquiry, the matter may be entrusted to the C.B.I. to register the F.I.R. on the basis of the said report and to proceed with the investigation. A similar request was made by the learned counsel in other cases where similar allegations of financial irregularities were made against the University authorities. It was submitted by one of the petitioners appearing in different petition that Dr. Naseem Bhatia, Vice-Chancellor of the University, is highly influential & the State Government will not be in a position to institute any sort of enquiry against her. At the cost of repetition, it was submitted by Mr. Bhoot and other counsel that neither the State Government nor the Chancellor are in a position to even issue a single line show cause notice to Dr. Naseem Bhatia. thus, for free & fair investigation, a prayer was made to straightway entrust the investigation to the C.B.I. on the basis of the Vaishnav Committee Report. However, considering all the facts & circumstances of the case, the Court ordered as follows: "10. On careful consideration of the entire matter, we do not find any justified reason not to accept the prayer made by the Additional Advocate General to make the report submitted to this Court available to the State Government. Accordingly, we direct the Dy. Registrar, Judicial, Rajasthan High Court, Jodhpur to give a copy of the report submitted by the Committee headed by Shri M.D. Vaishnav to Shri N.M. Lodha, Additional Advocate General."
(3.) LEARNED Additional Advocate General made another application for delivery of the original record to the State Government required for initiating the enquiry. This Court by order dated 1.9.2005 directed to give a photo copy of the record to the State Government. Respondent No.5 Professor Rajesh Mathur and respondent No.6 Ravi Saxena also filed an application to make them available the copy of the preliminary report of the Committee headed by Shri M.D. Vaishnav, Registrar. The application was opposed by Mr.M.C. Bhoot. It was submitted that in view of the serious allegations made against the three officers viz., Dr. Naseem Bhatia Vice Chancellor, Professor Rajesh Mathur Coordinator and Ravi Saxena Member, RPET-2003, the Court for its prima facie satisfaction appointed the Enquiry Committee and the question before the Court is only that on the basis of the material available, should direction be given for investigation by an appropriate police agency? The Vaishnav Committee is only a fact finding Committee. The persons affected are not required to be heard before lodging a F.I.R. However, in the interest of justice, we directed to supply a copy of the Report to Mr.J.P. Joshi, learned counsel appearing for JNV University Jodhpur and all other respondents including the Vice-Chancellor, Coordinator and the Member of the RPET-2003. It is reported by Mr.N.M. Lodha, learned A.A.G., that the matter is pending consideration to initiate an enquiry against the persons concerned on the basis of the report of the Vaishnav Committee before the State Government and the Chancellor. Mr. M.C. Bhoot, learned counsel for the petitioner, reiterated his apprehension of an attempt to eyewash or whitewash the report by the State Government as well as the Chancellor. It was further submitted that the State authorities somehow wants to bye time to allow Dr. Naseem Bhatia to complete her term of three years, which is expiring on 9.02.2006. It was, thus, prayed that no further time may be given and the matter may be finally heard. Thus, this Court by order dated 2.1.2006 posted the case for final hearing on 9.1.2006. ;