Andhra Pradesh High Court Sets Aside Order Asking YSR University To Declare Results For Supplementary MBBS Exam Before Aug 08

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has set aside a single bench order directing the Y S R University of Health Sciences, Vijaywada, to hold the supplementary and practical examinations of the 4th year MBBS Part-II for year 2022-2023 and declare the results on or before August 08. 

The division bench of Acting Chief Justice A.V. Sesha Sai and Justice R. Raghunandan Rao observed that guidelines as issued by the Medical Council of India stipulate that universities must conduct supplementary exams within 6 months of the publication of results in the primary exam.

“However, the regulation states that the supplementary examination is to be held not later than six months after the publication of the results. In the present case, the results were published only in February of 2023. This would mean that the supplementary examinations can be conducted in August, 2023. In the circumstances, the contention that examinations cannot be conducted in August, 2023 would have to be rejected,” said the court.

The court further observed that the university would have to consider various requirements, while setting date for supplementary exam, which need not be interfered with unless gravely violative of Article 14. “We do not find any such unreasonableness or arbitrary exercise of discretion,” said the bench.

Earlier this year, a group of eight students from the YSR University of Health and Sciences approached the High Court contending that practical exams conducted for MBBS (part II) was arbitrary and a very large percentage of the students had been failed. A single Judge ordered re-examination in practical examinations in three subjects viz., General Medicine, General Surgery and Pediatrics,

The university then due to conduct of re-examinations in April postponed the supplementary examinations for MBBS from the months of May to the months of August/September. This Notification was challenged again by the students, holding that the Medical Council of India mandated supplementary examinations to be conducted within six months from Primary examination. Following the orders of the Court, the supplementary exams were preponed by the University from the months of August/September to July/August.

The students then approached the court for a third time, contending that the latest notification issued by the University was still in violation of the guidelines issued by the Medical Council of India. It was argued that if exams were held in the month of July/August, they would not be eligible to appear for the NEET P.G. Examination which would be conducted in  2024 unless they pass the MBBS 4th year on or before August 11 and consequently completed their one year internship by 11.08.2024. The Single Judge directed the University to schedule exams by accommodating the requests of the students and publishing results by August 08.

Aggrieved by the Order, the University preferred this appeal. Advocate G. Vijay Kumar, representing the varsity, argued that the exams are to be conducted in 18 colleges all across the state, and all logistics have to be considered. Kumar said the plea of the students cannot be viewed individually. It was also argued that the university had preponed the exams as much as possible, but could not anymore. The university also submitted that the tentative date for the NEET PG exam-2024 had not yet been released and the information provided by the students could not be relied upon as the same was provided by a private coaching institute.

Advocate Vivek Chandrasekhar, the counsel appearing for National Medical Commission, contented that the NEET PG cutoff date is issued only by the National Board of Examinations. The cutoff date is usually notified about one month before the conduct of the examination, he adding, that the cutoff dates prescribed by this organization for the past few years has been the months of March/April except for the year 2021 when the cutoff date was fixed for June of 2021.

Advocate Joythi Eswar Gogineni, appearing on behalf of the aggrieved students contented that guidelines provided by the Medical Council mandates that supplementary exams be held within six months from primary exams. She said that the University did not have any administrative difficulty in preponing the examinations but was merely trying to accommodate the student who passed 3rd year MMBS examinations in the month of June 2023. She further contended that the cutoff dates for NEET PG had not yet been released for this year, and the same could be the case next year.

The bench observed that the contentions of the aggrieved students were based merely on apprehensions, on the basis of some private website.  “The print out produced by the respondents 1 to 8, to demonstrate that the cutoff date is 11.08.2024, is a print out from a private website. This print out cannot be treated as an authentic source of information on the basis of which this Court can accept 11.08.2024 as the cutoff date,” it said. 

It added: "It must be held that the respondents 1 to 8 have failed to demonstrate either of the primary contentions that conduct of supplementary examinations in August, 2024 would be beyond the time stipulated by the Medical Council of India or that the cutoff date for qualifying for the NEET P.G Entrance Examination of 2024 would be 11.08.2024."

While allowing the appeal and setting aside the orders passed by a single judge, the bench observed that for an individual to invoke the Writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution, the Court must be satisfied of the fact that there was violation of rights as promised under a statue and the same was done in an arbitrary manner.

“It is settled law that any person who approaches this Court, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, would have to demonstrate a violation of his or her rights and an action which is arbitrary or violative of any regulations or provisions of law by the respondent authorities. In the present case, there has been no violation of any regulation by the 1st respondent in fixing the fresh schedule under the notification of 20.06.2023,” said the court.

Title: DR YSR University of Health and Sciences and ors vs. Parvatha Reddy Chandrahasa & Ors.

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