Authority: Supreme Court of India

Order Date: 31-08-2026

Case Overview

  • Petitioners: Sri Venkateswara University & others; Respondents: State of Tamil Nadu & others.
  • Petition filed as Special Leave to Appeal (C) No. 29551/2026 against Madras High Court judgment dated 10-08-2026 in WP No. 27783/2025.
  • Petitioners contended that paragraphs 147‑148 of P.A. Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra (2005) make ad‑hoc fee arrangements cease once appropriate legislation is enacted.
  • Cited Tamil Nadu Private Universities Act, 2019, Section 33(e), under which the University’s Executive Council framed ordinances on 28‑06‑2023, leading to the Fee Fixation Committee fixing fee structure notified on 26‑07‑2025.
  • Argued that the statutory fee determination supersedes the High Court’s interim fee order, allowing the university to collect the committee‑determined fees.

Final Outcome

  • Court issued a notice, returnable within four weeks, directing petitioners to file an affidavit containing the statutes and ordinances produced during arguments.
  • Subject to the final disposition of the petition, petitioners are entitled to accept the fee as fixed by the Fee Fixation Committee.
  • Petitioners must file an undertaking to reimburse any shortfall between fees charged and the committee‑determined fees if they fail to collect the latter.

Topics: Higher Education Regulation, Fee Fixation