JUDGMENT :

S.G. Dige, J.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With consent of the parties taken up for final hearing at admission stage.

2. By this Writ Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner seeks directions against the respondents to correct her NRI quota and to consider her from the State quota for Maharashtra for NEET-UG-2021. The petitioner is also challenging the communication classifying her in NRI quota.

3. Respondent no.1 - Medical Education and Medicine Department is the Department of the Government pertaining to education in Health Sciences. Respondent no.2 – Government Maharashtra State Common Entrance Test Cell, who is the Competent Authority to conduct the common entrance test. The said authority is to oversee the Centralized Admission Process for health sciences courses.

4. Brief facts of the case are as under:-

The petitioner is aspirant of admission to M.B.B.S. course. The petitioner and her parents are residents of Shahada, Tq. Shahada, Dist. Nandurbar. They have immovable properties at Shahada. The petitioner’s father is Scientist in Department of Space (ISRO), the Government of India. His job is transferable. The petitioner has passed her S.C.C. and H.S.C. examination from Bhopal (State of Madhya Pradesh). The respondents conducted NEET-UG-2021. The petitioner had enrolled for the said entrance test. The petitioner has applied from the reserved category. The caste certificate of Scheduled Caste is issued to the petitioner by the Sub-Divisional Officer, Shahada. On 17th January, 2021, a programme was published by respondent no.2 regarding admission process. When the petitioner uploaded the admission form, automatically the petitioner was classified as NRI. Immediately, the petitioner made representation on 25.01.2022 to respondent no.2, but respondent no.2 did not respond to the representation. Hence the petitioner has approached this Court praying that the petitioner be treated from State quota and not from NRI quota.

5. It is the contention of Mr. S.P. Brahme, learned counsel for the petitioner that the petitioner is domiciled of Maharashtra. The petitioner and her parents are permanent resident of Shahada, Dist. Nandurbar. They have immovable properties at Shahada. A certificate of domicile of State of Maharashtra is issued to petitioner. The petitioner’s father is Scientist in Department of Space (ISRO), Government of India. His job is transferable. The petitioner has completed her S.S.C. and H.S.C. examination from Bhopal (State of Madhya Pradesh). When the petitioner submitted form for examination of entrance test i.e. NEET-UG-2021, the petitioner is classified into NRI category. Due to government service, the petitioner’s father is out of Maharashtra. As the petitioner is domiciled of Maharashtra, her application should be considered under State quota and not from NRI quota. He relies upon the judgment in the case of Rajiv Purshottam Wadhwa vs. State of Maharashtra, through its Department of Medical Education and Drugs and others reported in 2001 (1) All M.R. 824. In this judgment, the Division bench of Principal Seat of this Court has held that the State Government to consider grant of admission to students who are domiciled but due to certain circumstances have not passed 10th Standard Examination from within State. Learned counsel also relies upon the judgment in the case of Dipali D/o. Uttamrao Dakre vs. The State of Maharashtra and others reported in 1999 (4) Bom. C.R. 136. In this judgment, the Division Bench of Principal Seat of this Court held that if such a servant, who is in active defence service, is domicile of the State of Maharashtra and was posted outside Maharashtra and, therefore, his children had to take education outside Maharashtra, those children cannot be excluded from consideration to (sic for) admission to the Medical and other professional colleges in the State of Maharashtra. Therefore, the Division Bench had directed the State Government to cons