Cuttack: The Orissa High Court Single Judge Bench Justice Ananda Chandra Behera, has quashed de-registration of a female PhD scholar of Fakir Mohan University, Balasore allowing her another opportunity to complete her doctoral studies.

The student had approached the Court seeking to set aside the order dated May 28, 2025, issued by the university's Controller of Examination, which de-registered her from the Ph.D programme citing repeated failure to complete the course and non-payment of required fees.

During the hearing, counsel for the university and the State strongly opposed the petition. They argued that "the conduct and attitude of the petitioner is not at all justifying her for the renewal of her PhD registration number," adding that she was "a continuous defaulter" who had failed multiple times to complete her research and was de-registered at the instance of her own guide.

However, Justice Behera on Friday took a sympathetic view of the petitioner's situation. Observing her intent to complete her doctoral studies, he noted that "when the petitioner is eagerly interested to complete her PhD. only in order to achieve the last goal of her life," denying her another opportunity would not serve any meaningful purpose.

Justice Behera further emphasized that restoring her registration would not harm any party and instead "shall be in the best interest of the petitioner as well as the society at large." On this basis, the Judge held that there was "no justification to disallow this Writ Petition.

"Accordingly, the Court set aside the de-registration order and directed the Fakir Mohan University authorities to renew the petitioner's PhD registration number in accordance with UGC norms within 15 days from the submission of the certified copy of the judgment. The university was also instructed to allow her to continue her research under a guide as per applicable regulations.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.