Cuttack: Battle over the legitimacy of running self-financed courses and seats at Ravenshaw University has intensified in Orissa High Court.

While the varsity has claimed in an affidavit that there was no way other than self-financed courses and seats to meet its budget deficit, the Ravenshaw Bikash Abhijan (RBA) has countered by contending that increasing number of students in that category would alter the nature of the state-run institution.

A PIL filed by RBA seeking conversion of existing self-financed courses to regular ones is pending before a division bench of the high court.

In a rejoinder to the varsity's affidavit, the RBA has claimed that in the next two or three years, the total strength of students will increase to 8,824 and if the admission brochure 2018-19 was any indication, the total number of students in the self-financed category would be 3,672.

"Enrolling 41 per cent of students in self-financing category will change the very character of the public-funded university meant for common meritorious students," RBA president Chittaranjan Mohanty contended. "Besides, with this huge student strength with limited space and faculty strength, it is not possible to give quality education to the students."

In a counter affidavit to the PIL, registrar Maheswar Agasti said: "The university has no other means of meeting its budgetary deficit other than through self-financing courses to ensure quality education."

Agasti had claimed that the university was facing a budgetary deficit of Rs 14.26 crore.

Mohanty has countered the varsity's affidavit saying it "did not reveal the particular source of this deficit".

"First of all, as a state university, it needs to pass the estimated budget from competent authority in the state government and if the government approves the budget, it will definitely pay the deficit amount," he said in his rejoinder.

While pointing out that the university seemed to have not made any communication with the government regarding the budget and asking the government to pay for the deficit amount, Mohanty in his rejoinder alleged that by showing "the estimated deficit budget (which needs serious scrutiny)" it was "trying to legitimise its introduction of self-financing courses without providing adequate infrastructure and faculty".

The varsity had claimed in its affidavit that during 2018-19, it estimates to generate Rs 41,59,83,825 from various courses, of which Rs 11,29,48,724 was from self-financed courses. Even including all receipts of the varsity, the total amount comes to Rs 59,92,44,816 while its total expenditure is Rs 74,19,06,136. Consequently, the university faces a budgetary deficit of Rs 14,26,61,320.