Telangana HC Directs Malla Reddy College To Return the Certificates to the Student
Court says colleges cannot retain academic documents to recover unpaid fees
Hyderabad: Holding that educational institutions had no legal authority to retain a student's original academic certificates for recovery of unpaid fees, the Telangana High Court has directed Malla Reddy Engineering College at Dhulapally to return all original certificates of a BTech graduate within a week.
Justice Juvvadi Sridevi was allowing a writ petition filed by E. Charan Tej, who alleged that the college had refused to return his original academic documents after completion of his BTech course, insisting that he first pay Rs 3.09 lakh towards tuition fees allegedly pending due to non-release of the government's fee reimbursement.
The petitioner said he sought the return of the certificates as he required them to pursue an MTech programme. The college allegedly refused to release the documents unless the outstanding amount was paid.
During the hearing, despite service of notice, the college did not appear before the court. Emphasising that original academic certificates were the exclusive property of the student, Justice Sridevi held that, in the absence of any statutory authority, the college had no legal right to retain them.
The court ruled that even if the institution had a genuine monetary claim against the student, its remedy lay in initiating appropriate legal proceedings for recovery of the alleged dues. It could not withhold original certificates as security for payment.
