SC Stays Telangana HC Judgment Which Declared That Pvt Medical Colleges Can't Collect 5 Years MBBS Fee

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the January 8 judgment of Telangana High Court that had directed the authorities to stop private medical colleges from levying MBBS fee for five years.

According to the HC, the private colleges could not charge 5 years' fee as the standard duration of MBBS course was 4.5 years.

Challenging this, the Telangana State Private Medical and Dental College Management Association approached the SC. A bench comprising Justices Indira Banerjee and Saniv Khanna issued notice on the petition and stayed the judgment after hearing arguments of Senior Advocate R Venkatramani with the assistance of Advocate Ramesh Allanki.

The petitioners stated that the  the "expenditure incurred is for the entire year and not a part of it".

The teachers are paid salaries for the whole year and the infrastructure of the college is also maintained for the whole year, the plea stated.

"While the final year students undertake only one semester in their final year, all other batches run for the whole year. Incidentally, there are also instances where some of the students are required to undergo additional classes, examinations and clinical postings for an extended duration of 6 years, and it may not be foreseeable in the beginning of the academic year as to which students will be required to do so", argued the petitioners.

The HC bench comprising Justices M S Ramachandra Rao and K Lakshman had declared illegal the declared the action of Telangana Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee (TAFRC) in recommending, as well as action of the State in permitting the association members to collect tuition fee from students admitted in private medical colleges for five years.

"It appears as if the State is proceeding on the assumption that all students who get admission to MBBS course are likely to fail and would require an additional six months course study and therefore, for all students, the fixation of fee shall be for five years. Such presumption is wholly without any basis because only some of the students might fail and require to be provided additional study period, but on that account all students cannot be charged tuition fee for five years when the course of study as fixed by the Medical Council of India is only four-and-a-half years," the High Court had observed.

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