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University Grants Commission v. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Vedic Vishwavidyalaya

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal Nos. 1395-1396 of 2017)Decided 3 Feb 2017
Civil Appeal Nos. 1395-1396 of 2017
Justice Kurian Joseph · Justice A.M. Khanwilkar

Background

This is an interim order, not a final judgment. The dispute is over whether Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Vedic Vishwavidyalaya should be classified as a State University or a private university. The University Grants Commission came to the Supreme Court because it had been directed to comply with an interim order requiring it to reclassify the university as a State University, while the main writ petition was still pending before the High Court.

Decision Breakdown

This is an interim order, not a final judgment. The Court said it would not be proper to express anything on the merits at this stage and made clear that it had not considered the merits. It ordered the parties to maintain status quo until the High Court disposes of the writ petition.

Lesson Learnt

There is no final ruling yet on whether the university is a State or a private university. That question stays with the High Court, and the position is frozen until it decides.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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