UPSC Articles
Supreme Court rules inclusion of deemed universities under Anti-corruption law
Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Education
In News:
- In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court has held that bribery and corruption in a deemed university can be tried under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Key takeaways:
- The judgement was given by a three-judge Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana.
- As per the judgement,
- Individuals, authorities or officials connected to a deemed university, irrespective of their role or designation, come under the definition of a ‘public servant’.
- Deemed universities come within the ambit of the term ‘university’ in Section 2 of the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act, 1988.
- A deemed institution, under the University Grants Commission Act of 1956, has the same common public duty like a university to confer academic degrees, which are recognised in the society.
Important value additions:
Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988
- It is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted to combat corruption in government agencies and public sector businesses in India.
- In 2018, Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill was passed under which punish bribe-givers and bribe-takers shall be punished.
- The Bill provides for jail terms of three to seven years, besides fine, to those convicted of taking or giving bribes to public officials.
Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 29th April 2020
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Deemed university
- Deemed university, or deemed-to-be-university, is an accreditation awarded to higher educational institutions in India, conferring the status of a university.
- It is granted by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development.
- Institutions that are ‘deemed-to-be-university’ enjoy the academic status and privileges of a university.
