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2019 Supreme(Del) 189
IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
C. HARI SHANKAR, J.
Travancore Medical College - Petitioner
Versus
Union of India And Anr. - Respondents
W.P.(C) 10767 of 2018 & CM APPL. 41995 of 2018
Decided On : 11-01-2019
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sandeep Sethi, Sr. Adv. with Mr. Kaushal Gautam, Mr. Shrey Vardhan and Ms. Ekta Singh, Advs.
For the Respondent: Ms. Monika Arora, CGSC with Mr. Kaushal Kumar and Mr. Praveen Singh, Advs., Mr. Vikas Singh, Sr. Adv. with Mr. T. Singhdev, Ms. Amandeep Kaur, Ms. Puja Sarkar, Mr. Tarun Verma and Mr. Abhijit Chakravarty, Advs.
Headnote:
MEDICAL COUNCIL OF INDIA ACT, 1956 - SECTION 10A - OPENING OF A NEW OR HIGHER COURSE OF STUDY OR TRAINING (INCLUDING POST-GRADUATE COURSE OF STUDY OR TRAINING) AND INCREASE OF ADMISSION CAPACITY IN ANY COURSE OF STUDY OR TRAINING (INCLUDING A POST GRADUATE COURSE OF STUDY OR TRAINING) REGULATIONS, 2000 - SECTION 3.3 - CONSENT OF AFFILIATION - TIME SCHEDULE FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICATION - SANCTITY OF TIME SCHEDULE - REJECTION OF APPLICATION FOR WANT OF CONSENT OF AFFILIATION - VALIDITY.
Fact of the Case:
Petitioner, a medical college, applied for starting of post-graduate courses in various clinical branches. The application was incomplete as it was not accompanied by the requisite Consent of Affiliation from the Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS). The MCI wrote to the Central Government that the application merited rejection. The Department of Health and Family Welfare responded, directing MCI to give a similar opportunity to PG applicants as was given to UC applicants. Petitioner submitted a representation to the BOG, which was rejected on the ground that the application was incomplete as on the last date of submitting applications. Petitioner challenged the rejection of its application.
Finding of the Court:
The time schedule stipulated in the Regulations for submission of the application with all requisite documents, was sacrosanct, and could not be violated. The MCI was justified in rejecting the petitioner’s application, submitted on 4th April, 2018, vide the impugned communication, dated 14th November, 2018, on the ground that the application was not accompanied with the requisite Consent of Affiliation, from the KUHS.
Issues: Whether the MCI was justified in rejecting the petitioner’s application, submitted on 4th April, 2018, vide the impugned communication, dated 14th November, 2018, on the ground that the application was not accompanied with the requisite Consent of Affiliation, from the KUHS.
Ratio Decidendi: The time-schedule, contemplated in the Regulation, for submission of the complete application, and the processing thereof, stage by stage, till the grant of financial consent by the Central Government for the establishment of a new college or the starting of a new course, is sacrosanct and binding. Neither was it open to the MCI to depart there from, nor would it be open to this Court to issue any direction, which would amount to, or even necessitate, such a departure.
Final Decision: Writ petition dismissed with no order as to costs.
Facts
1. Section 10A of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as “the IMC Act”), deals with grant of permission for establishment of a new medical college or a new course of study, and reads thus:
“10. A Permission for establishment of new medical college, new course of study etc. –
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any other law for the time being in force: –
(a) no person shall establish a medical college; or
(b) no medical college shall –
(i) open a new or higher course of study or training (including a postgraduate course of study or training) which would enable a student of such course or training to qualify himself for the award of any recognised medical qualification; or
(ii) increase its admission capacity in any course of study or training (including a postgraduate course of study or training), except with the previous permission of the Central Government obtained in accordance with the provisions of this section.
Explanation 1 –. For the purposes of this section, "person" includes any University or a trust but does not include the Central Government.
Explanation 2. – For the purposes of this section "admission capacity" in relation to any course of study or training (including postgraduate course of study or training) in a medical college, means the maximum number of students that may be fixed by the Council from time to time for being admitted to such course or training.
(2) (a) Every person or medical college shall, for the purpose of obtaining permission under sub-section (1), submit to the Central Government a scheme in accordance with the provisions of clause (b) and the central Government shall refer the scheme to the Council for its recommendations.
(b) The Scheme referred to in clause (a) shall be in such form and contain such particulars and be preferred in such manner and be accompanied with such fee as may be prescribed.
(3) On receipt of a scheme by the Council under sub-section (2) the Council may obtain such other particulars as may be considered necessary by it from the person or the medical college concerned, and thereafter, it may –
(a) if the scheme is defective and does not contain any necessary particulars, give a reasonable opportunity to the person or college concerned for making a written representation and it shall be open to such person or medical college to rectify the defects, if any, specified by the Council;
(b) consider the scheme, having regard to the factors referred to in sub-section (7) and submit the scheme together with its recommendations thereon to the Central Government.
(4) The Central Govt. may after considering the scheme and the recommendations of the Council under sub-section (3) and after obtaining, where necessary, such other particulars as may be considered necessary by it from the person or college concerned, and having regard to the factors referred to in sub-section (7), either approve (with such conditions, if any, as it may consider necessary) or disapprove the scheme, and any such approval shall be a permission under sub-section (1):
Provided that no scheme shall be disapproved by the Central Government except after giving the person or college concerned a reasonable opportunity of being heard; Provided further that nothing in this sub section shall prevent any person or medical college whose scheme has not been approved by the Central Government to submit a fresh scheme and the provisions of this section shall apply to such scheme, as if such scheme has been submitted for the first time under sub-section (1).
(5) Where, within a period of one year from the date of submission of the scheme to the Central Government under sub-section (1), no order passed by the Central Government has been communicated to the person or college submitting the scheme, such scheme shall be deemed to have been approved by the Central Government in
