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The Actions of Executive Authorities override Primary Legislation or Subordinate Rules through Notifications --- Lahore High Court, Lahore

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The Actions of Executive Authorities override Primary Legislation or Subordinate Rules through Notifications --- Lahore High Court, Lahore

Islamabad 28-12-2024: In a significant judgment, a division bench of the Lahore High Court comprising Mr. Justice Muhammad Sajid Mehmood Sethi and Mr. Justice Rasaal Hasan Syed has struck down notifications revising registration fees and imposing a validity period for private educational institutions in Punjab. The impugned notifications, issued by the Punjab Higher Education Department, were declared illegal for lacking statutory backing and exceeding the authority granted under the Punjab Private Educational Institutions (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance, 1984.

The case arose from an Intra-Court Appeal filed by Punjab Group of Colleges challenging a Single Bench judgment that dismissed their constitutional petition against the notifications dated March 14, 2022, and March 31, 2022. These notifications revised the fee structure for registration and introduced a validity period for registration certificates. The appellant contended that the changes were arbitrary, unreasonable, and contrary to the provisions of the Ordinance of 1984 and the Punjab Private Educational Institutions Rules, 1984.

The Court found that:

The notifications had no legal foundation under the Ordinance or its rules. Sections 3 and 6 of the Ordinance did not prescribe any validity period for registration certificates, nor did they empower the respondents to revise the fee structure through notifications.
The fee structure defined in Rule 5 of the 1984 Rules could not be amended without proper legislation. Notifications attempting to make such changes were deemed ultra vires.
It was reiterated that executive authorities cannot amend primary legislation or subordinate rules through notifications. Actions lacking statutory backing are void.

The Court allowed the appeal, declaring the impugned notifications illegal and without lawful authority. It was noted, however, that the appellant would not claim a refund of the fees already paid under these notifications, as per their undertaking.