New Delhi, Sep 27 (PTI) Getting aid is not a fundamental right, the Supreme Court observed on Monday and said the government should take into account various factors such as financial constraints and deficiencies while deciding on aid for educational institutions.

Also, when it comes to aided institutions, there cannot be any difference between a minority and non-minority one, the apex court said.

Also Read | PSTCL Admit Card 2021 for The Post of Architect Released, Here’s How Candidates Can Download their E-Admit Cards Online at pstcl.org.

“Right to get an aid is not a fundamental right, the challenge to a decision made in implementing it, shall only be on restricted grounds," said a bench of Justices S K Kaul and M M Sundresh.

“Therefore, even in a case where a policy decision is made to withdraw the aid, an institution cannot question it as a matter of right. Maybe, such a challenge would still be available to an institution, when a grant is given to one institution as against the other institution which is similarly placed,” the bench said.

Also Read | Pune Shocker: Drunk Man Sets Sister on Fire in Aundh After Heated Argument Over Property.

The top court said if an institution does not want to accept and comply with the conditions accompanying such aid, it is well open to it to decline the grant and move on its own way.

“On the contrary, an institution can never be allowed to say that the grant of aid should be on its own terms,” the bench said.

The apex court's observations came while allowing Uttar Pradesh's appeal challenging the Allahabad High Court verdict holding that Regulation 101 framed under The Intermediate Education Act, 1921 is unconstitutional.

The top court said that once it is held that right to get an aid is not a fundamental right, the challenge to a decision made in implementing it, shall only be on restricted grounds.

“Therefore, even in a case where a policy decision is made to withdraw the aid, an institution cannot question it as a matter of right. Maybe, such a challenge would still be available to an institution, when a grant is given to one institution as against the other institution which is similarly placed.

“Therefore, with the grant of an aid, the conditions come. If an institution does not want to accept and comply with the conditions accompanying such aid, it is well open to it to decline the grant and move in its own way,” the bench said.

The bench said that a policy decision is presumed to be in public interest, and such a decision once made is not amenable to challenge, until and unless there is manifest or extreme arbitrariness, a Constitutional court is expected to keep its hands off.

“An executive power is residue of a legislative one, therefore the exercise of said power i.e., the amendment of the impugned regulation, cannot be challenged on the basis of mere presumption,” the bench said.

Once a rule is introduced by way of a policy decision, a demonstration on the existence of manifest, excessive and extreme arbitrariness is needed, the apex court said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)