Kochi: Kerala High Court on Tuesday held that colleges and hostel campuses are not venues for the students to ‘show off’ their material possessions and cause distraction to others.
The court upheld a recent circular issued by the government after the CET tragedy when a girl student was fatally hit by a jeep driven by a college mate during the Onam revelry.
The court observed that to implement the circular, the colleges should provide separate parking space for the students and their vehicles should be allowed only up to the designated parking area. Entry beyond that point should be strictly prohibited.
“A pole barrier should be kept slightly far away and the entry of the vehicles of the students shall be restricted by a security guard appointed by the college. Only the vehicles of the teaching and non-teaching staff shall be permitted to go beyond the pole barrier for access to places near their departments,” the court held.
“The college authorities must provide security for the vehicles parked in the area,” it said.
The court held that the college authorities should be permitted to impose a fine or even confiscate the vehicle of the students if they cross the pole barrier without justification.
The court passed the order while considering the petitions filed by 26 students who have been suspended from the college for varying periods for alleged misconduct in connection with the Onam celebrations at the College of Engineering and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram.
Lauding the efforts of the state to stop the celebrations after 9 pm, the court observed that students are often let loose after 9 pm without any supervision.
Only bicycles were permitted for students on the campuses of Indian Institute of Technology having 100 acres whereas the college campuses here do not exceed 10 acres, it said.
“Students riding motorcycles without helmets at breakneck speed carrying pillion riders on the campus is not an uncommon sight.
The sound emanating from motorcycles and cars along the roads on the campus spoils the academic ambiance, hence it has to be curbed.
Differently-abled students can, however, be permitted by the principal to get themselves dropped near the class for which an order in writing is essential.
The court further held that disciplinary action should be best left to the college administration and the court declined to interfere in the petition.
