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2018 Supreme(Chh) 224
IN THE HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR
Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan, Sharad Kumar Gupta, JJ.
Dr. Ravikant Singh Rathore, S/o Mr. Lambodar Prasad Rathore & Ors. – Petitioner
Versus
State of Chhattisgarh & Ors. – Respondents
WPC No. 916, 914, 917, 923, 924, 1069, 1040, 965, 1205 of 2018
Decided On : 04-05-2018
For the Petitioners:Shri. Manoj Paranjpe Shri. Rahul Tamaskar, Shri. Sanjay Agrawal, Shri. Devesh G. Kela, Advocates
For the Respondent:Shri. Prafull Bharat and Shri. Y. S. Thakur, Additional Advocate Generals, Shri. R.S. Marhas and Shri. Aman Tamboli
Headnote:
Chhattisgarh Medical Post Graduate Entrance Rules 2018 - Modified contrary - Post Graduate Courses - Entrance Test for admission - petitioners and the learned counsel for the Medical Council of India as well as the learned Additional Advocate General an order was issued by this Court on - Applying the judgment of this Court rendered in Writ Petition, provisions governing bonus or incentive marks for ear-marked sectors ought to be available on the basis of the provisions that applied while candidate applied for the NEET examination or at least as on the date of declaration of the result on NEET Examination by the NBE - NEET examination results were declared - Rules of selection cannot be changed adverse to the interest of the candidates, varying the provisions that governed the filed as on the date of declaration of the NEET results. Obviously, it is well within the domain of the rule making power of the State in terms - Held, petitioner has different contentions of which; those contentions which stand covered by what we have stated hereinabove, are decided against him. His only plea that remains for consideration is that he has not been enlisted as a service candidate by the Director of Medical Education while preparing the list for counselling, though marks have been counted as if he is a service candidate. That is purely as a factual issue and the eligibility of the petitioner will depend upon different factors. The first issue would be as to what is the mark that he has gained in the competitive examination. The second issue would be as to what is the bonus or incentive marks that would accrue to him in terms of the 2017 Rules - Third would be as that whether he is eligible to be counted as a service candidate for the purpose of inclusion in the list in terms - Writ petition Dismissed
Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan, J.
1. These writ petitions are filed by the Doctors, who are working in different Government Hospitals in the State of Chhattisgarh and aspiring to be admitted to the Post Graduate Courses in different medical colleges in the State of Chhattisgarh following the National Eligibility-cum- Entrance Test for admission to M.D./M.S. Post Graduate Diploma Courses conducted by the National Board of Examination (for short 'NBE').
2. Hearing the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned counsel for the Medical Council of India as well as the learned Additional Advocate General an order was issued by this Court on 13/04/2018. The relevant portion of which reads as follows :-
“We have heard the learned counsel for the Petitioners, the learned counsel for the Medical Council of India and the learned Additional Advocate General.
(i) The last date fixed for application for the NEETPG 2018 examination was 27.11.2017.
(ii) NEET examination was held on 07.01.2018.
(iii) NEET Examination results were declared on 23.01.2018.
(iv) Chhattisgarh Medical Post Graduate Entrance Rules 2018 (for short 2017 Rules*) came into force w.e.f 13.03.2018. (*corrected as 2018 Rules')
(v) The last date of online application for the State quota as per the 2018 Rules is 02.04.2018.
The Chhattisgarh Medical Post Graduation Entrance Rules, 2017 (for short 2017 Rules) was in force till the declaration of the result of the NEET examination. Applying the judgment of this Court rendered on 16.05.2017 in Writ Petition (C) NO. 924 of 2017, the provisions governing the bonus or incentive marks for ear-marked sectors ought to be available on the basis of the provisions that applied while the candidate applied for the NEET examination or at least as on the date of declaration of the result on the NEET Examination by the NBE. For the year 2018, NEET examination results were declared on 23.01.2018. Rules of selection cannot be changed adverse to the interest of the candidates, varying the provisions that governed the filed as on the date of declaration of the NEET results. Obviously, it is well within the domain of the rule making power of the State in terms of the Medical Council of India Regulations and the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 (for short 'the 1956 Act') to make any modification or provision diluting those prescriptions or enlarging the filed of choice without affecting the interest of the candidates, who are in the list published by the NBE after the NEET examination; provided such change in the rules are not in violation of the Act, 1956 or the Regulations.
The 2017 Rules had a particular set pattern of provisions for bonus or incentive marks. As per the 2018 Rules, which are published on 13.03.2018, that has been modified contrary to what was available on the date of publication of the results of the NEET examination for 2018. The Petitioners also have the contention that while the areas identified as the difficult areas or the scheduled areas in 2017 Rules were so identified on the basis of relevant data. The Petitioners contend that the identification of the rural area, difficult area and the remote area as per the 2018 Rules has been done without any empherical study in accordance with law laid down by the Supreme Court in State of Haryana & Another v. Narendra Soni & Another (2017) 14 SCC 642 and has made only by making reference to a particular government order which identified the areas merely for the purpose of deployment or re-deployment of government servants for the better management of the executive functions of the State. The criticism raised by the Petitioner is that such government order does not identify the areas on the basis of medical need or health services sector's issues; therefore, the identification of the areas for the purpose of confirming bonus or incentive marks have to be done for the current year following the provisions there for in the year 2017 Rules.
In the 2018 Rules, the field of choice has b
