Judgment

SHELAT, J. (for himself and on behalf of Bhargava, J.):These five petitions have been filed by candidates who failed to be selected for admission in Government Medical Colleges in the State of Mysore and challenge the validity of the Selection Rules framed by the Government. Since they raise common questions, it is expedient to deal with them together and dispose them of by a common judgment. Writ Petition No.619 of 1970, we were told by counsel, is the most comprehensive of them all and therefore we shall deal with it first and as typical of the rest. As the rest of the petitions raise the same questions, it is not necessary to deal with each of them separately. Writ Petitions Nos. 621 and 622, however raise certain additional questions which will be dealt with to that extent separately.

2. Writ Petition No. 619 of 1970 :

The petitioner in this Writ Petition passed the Secondary School Leaving examination in March 1968 obtaining first class marks. In March 1969, she passed the Pre-University Course Examination held by the Bangalore University securing 67 per cent marks in optional subjects, namely Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and 71 per cent marks in the aggregate. Her father having retired at Dharwar, she prosecuted her further studies for B.Sc. Part I examination in the Karnatak Science College, Dharwar, a college affiliated to the Karnatak University. She passed the B.Sc. Part I examination held by that University securing once again a first class.

3. Under Ordinance 144 (c) of the Karnatak University a student having passed the B.Sc. Part I examination with Physics, Chemistry and Biology as his optional subjects would be eligible for admission to a medical course provided he has obtained the minimum marks prescribed for admission to that course from time to time. The petitioner having obtained first class marks in the B. Sc. Part I examination was therefore, eligible for admission to the medical course in the medical colleges affiliated to that University.

4. There are three Universities in Mysore States namely Karnatak, Mysore and Bangalore Universities. All the three University course examination, the passing of which makes a student eligible for admission to courses leading to University degrees. But whereas the Karnatak University requires the passing of B. Sc. Part I examination leading M. B. B. S. as the minimum qualification for being eligible for medical course, the other two Universities require the passing of what is called the Pre-Professional examination, which is equivalent to B.Sc. Part I leading to M. B. B. S. degree of the Karnatak University.

5. The State of Mysore conducts four medical colleges; the Government Medical College at Mysore which is affiliated to the Mysore University the Government Medical College at Bangalore, which is affiliated to the Bangalore University, and the Karnatak Medical College at Hubli and the Government Medical College at Bellary, which are affiliated to the Karnatak University. All the four medical colleges together have 765 seats in the aggregate. Besides these four institutions, there are also private managed medical colleges at Manipal, Davangere, Belgaum and Gulbarga with 120 seats in each of them, admission upto 10 therein being under the control of the Government.

6. The State Government has framed rules, called the Mysore Medical Colleges (Selection for Admission ) Rules, 1970 regulating admission to Government medical colleges and for a certain number of seats specified therein in each of the said private medical colleges. Under those rules the selection for admission to the Government medical colleges as also for the seats under the control of entrusted to a selection committee constituted by the Government.

7. In accordance with the said rules, the petitioner applied to the selection committee for admission to any one of the medical colleges affiliated to the Karnatak University. She was, however, not selected. For appreciating the reasons why the committee co