A Coimbatore-based educational trust, which altered its trust deed 35 years after inception to convert its government-aided college into a “linguistic minority” institution, has suffered a blow with a division bench of the Madras High Court quashing a Government Order conferring minority status to it six years ago.

The CBM College in Coimbatore, which was established in 1975, by an educational trust specifically declared to be a “public trust” was mired in controversy in 2008 following allegations of collection of donation and other charges. Subsequently, in March 2009, the Directorate of Collegiate Education had after an inquiry suspended admission of students for the academic year 2009-10.

Within a few months the management of the college altered its bylaws through a supplemental deed to migrate from being a “public” trust to a “linguistic minority” trust.

It then applied to the State Government to accord it the status of a Telugu linguistic minority institution.

In September 2009, the State issued a Government Order conferring the linguistic minority status on the institution for a period of five years from 2009-10 to 2013-14.

However, the CBM College’s Tamil Nadu Association of Non-teaching Staff of Aided Colleges unit and its Association of University Teachers unit moved the Madras High Court challenging the Government Order. But a single judge upheld the decision.

Assailing this, the two units approached a Division Bench to set aside the single judge’s order and quash the GO.

In a common order delivered on Wednesday last, a bench of Justices A. Selvam and P. Kalaiyarasan held that the CBM Trust was never established with a view to promote linguistic minority community, especially Telugu speaking people.

“As taunted earlier, only for getting minority status, the supplemental Trust Deed has come into existence on February 27, 2009. Further, it is seen from the records that the second respondent and other institutions have been established even during 1974.

After a lapse of 35 years, the present attempt has been made for getting minority status. The Government of Tamil Nadu, as noted down earlier, without considering the purpose for which the Trust in question has been established and also without considering that the Trust itself is a public Trust, have erroneously passed the impugned G.O.(Ms.) No.355 dated September 25, 2009,” the judges pointed out.

“Since the G.O in question is nothing but a total violation of objects of the Trust in question, this court is of the view that the same is liable to be quashed,” the bench said while setting aside the single judge’s order.

The court conclusively held that the Trust was established for the benefits of general public and not for the benefits of particular community, especially linguistic minority.