Admission Schedule To Post­graduate Medical Courses Must Be Followed Strictly : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court reiterated that the schedule for admission to the post­graduate medical courses must be followed strictly.

The bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and CT Ravikumar observed thus while setting aside the judgment of the High Court of Calcutta directing ­West Bengal University of Health Sciences to grant admission to some ­candidates after the cut-off date.

Before the High Court, the candidates (writ petitioners) contended that although the final round of counselling on 31st May, 2019 is over, the post­graduate seats for academic session 2019-­20 are still available/lying vacant and at least against the vacant seats, they may be considered for admission in the post­graduate medical course. The High Court, in an interim order, directed the University to grant provisional admissions to the students in post­graduate medical courses by ignoring the cutoff date. Later the interim order was made absolute.

In appeals before the Apex Court, the National Medical Commission contended that the High Court erred in directing the provisional admissions in this batch of appeals in post­graduate medical courses in the academic year 2019­2-0 beyond 31st May and that apart, the admission could not have been made on the principle of first­ come ­first­ serve regardless of their placement in the order of merit which is the touchstone for admissions to the post­graduate medical courses. On the other hand, the Students requested the Court to take a sympathetic view on the premise that they have been allowed to continue in their respective post­graduate medical courses for quite some time or few of them have completed the course in the interregnum despite the order of stay granted by the Court.

The court observed:

"Last date for admissions to the post­graduate medical course will not be extended after 31st May and the schedule has been prescribed in compliance of the judgments of this Court of which reference has been made in Mridul Dhar(Minor) and Another(supra) followed by this Court in Priya Gupta (supra) and Ashish Ranjan and Others(supra) and this Court has consistently held that the schedule for admission to the post­graduate medical courses must be followed strictly leaving no discretion to any authority to permit admissions over the cut­off date under schedule for admission to post­graduate medical courses i.e. 31st May."

The court added that no sympathy can be shown to such students who have not only entered/admitted after 31st May of the year but their admissions were completely in contravention to the Regulations, 2000.

"Provisional admissions were granted by the High Court ignoring the principle of merit which is the sole touchstone for admission to the post­graduate courses based on the NEET examination, 2019 where admissions are made strictly in the order of merit­cum­preference and despite the stay order passed by this Court, if they are allowed to continue in post­graduate medical courses, the same would be completely illegal and such contemptuous action on the part of the authorities, cannot be approved by this Court", the court said while allowing the appeal.

Case details

Board of Governors of Medical Council of India vs Dr. Priyambada Sharma­ | 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 855 | SLP(C) 3507-­3508 of 2020 | 17 October 2022 | Justices Ajay Rastogi and CT Ravikumar

Headnotes

NEET - Post Graduate Medical Courses - Admission - The schedule for admission to the post­graduate medical courses must be followed strictly leaving no discretion to any authority to permit admissions over the cut­off date under schedule for admission to post­graduate medical courses. (Para 20)

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