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2000 Supreme(Guj) 46
Gujarat High Court
Judgename :A.M.KAPADIA, J.M.Panchal
KARMASAD MEDICAL ASSOCIATION - Appellant
Versus
STATE - Respondent
S.C.A.5607 of 1996
Decided On : 02/04/2000
Headnote:
Constitution of India - Articles 14, 16 and 226 - Gujarat Secondary Education Board - Education - Main relief claimed therein is that as the rule enabling the above-referred to universities to give preference to their own students in the matter of giving admission to the post graduate medical courses, is unconstitutional, the Universities should be restrained from enforcing that rule and the universities should be directed to consider the students who have passed final M. B. B. S. examination from Swami Medical College, on merits, while giving admission to post graduate medical courses - Held, The opportunity for medical education provided to them would be illusory and not real because they would not be able to avail of it - Moreover, some difficulty would also arise in case of girls because if they are not able to get admission in the medical college affiliated to their University, they might find it difficult to pursue medical education in a medical college situate in another region where hostel facilities may not be available and even if available, the parents may hesitate to send them to the hostels - Therefore, preference by University to its own students cannot be regarded as unreasonable or arbitrary - Therefore, the directions as sought for cannot be granted - The University is entitled to lay down sources from which selection for admission would be made - A provision laying down such sources is strictly speaking not a reservation. It is not a reservation as understood by Article 15 against which objection can be taken on the ground that it is excessive - Students of other Universities in the State are not denied admission in to Gujarat University on grounds of any religion, race, caste, language or any of them - Therefore, Rules 4 and 7 of Admission Rules are legal and valid and do not offend provisions of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. The students of all the universities are treated at par on the basis of examination results and no university has treated them differently, but only preference is given to the students of the university who secure marks as per regulations prescribed by the Medical Council of India - Petitions dismissed. (Para 34)
( 1 ) THE dispute, in these petitions, which are filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, relates to admission to Post Graduate Degrees and Diploma medical courses at the medical colleges affiliated to (i) Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, (ii) Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, (iii) Saurashtra University, Rajkot, and (iv) South Gujarat University, Surat.
( 2 ) SPECIAL Civil Application No. 5607/96 is filed as public interest litigation by an Association claiming to be a registered Association of the students undergoing studies in medical courses at Pramukh Swami Medical College, Karamsad, which is affiliated to Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar - Anand, District : Kheda. The main relief claimed therein is that as the rule enabling the above-referred to universities to give preference to their own students in the matter of giving admission to the post graduate medical courses, is unconstitutional, the Universities should be restrained from enforcing that rule and the universities should be directed to consider the students who have passed final M. B. B. S. examination from Pramukh Swami Medical College, Karamsad on merits, while giving admission to post graduate medical courses. In the alternative, the relief prayed for is that the State of Gujarat should be directed to conduct post graduate medical common entrance test for all the students of all the universities located in the State of Gujarat and grant admission to post graduate medical courses on the basis of result of said test or each university should be directed to hold common entrance test for atleast 30% of 75% of seats for the students of other universities located in the State and grant admission to those students, who qualify at the test according to merits.
( 3 ) IN Special Civil Application No. 5898/99, 16 students, who are undergoing medical courses at Pramukh Swami Medical College, Karamsad, claim that the abovereferred to universities should be directed to implement the decision of the Supreme Court in U. P. Junior Doctors Action Committee and others v. Dr. B. Sheetal Nandwani and others, AIR 1992, S. C. 671 and evolve a common entrance test for admission to post graduate medical courses. They have prayed that the respective rule of the university concerned which enables it to prefer its own students in the matter of admission to post graduate medical courses being violative of principles enshrined in Articles 14 AND 16 of the Constitution, should not be permitted to be enforced.
( 4 ) THOSE students, who pass Std. XII Higher Secondary Certificate Examination, Science Stream, conducted by Gujarat Secondary Education Board, are eligible for being considered for admission to 1st M. B. B. S. Course under the Centralised Admission Scheme. As per the said scheme, 15% of the total seats are meant for all India students who pass common entrance test; whereas 85% of the seats are reserved for students passing Higher Secondary Certificate Examination. As the seats are less and number of claimants is more, a merit list is drawn up for admission to 1st M. B. B. S. Course and admissions are given as per the number in merit list and preference indicated by the student concerned.
( 5 ) WE may state that Pramukh Swami Medical College at Karamsad started functioning and imparting education in medical courses in the year 1992 and was recognised by the Medical Council of India in the year 1994. After passing XIIth Std. Higher Secondary Certificate Examination in science stream, the petitioners were granted admission to Pramukh Swami Medical College, Karamsad. None of the petitioners had appeared at the common entrance test meant for all India students for securing admission to 1st M. B. B. S. Course in any of the medical colleges affiliated to Gujarat University, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Saurashtra University or South Gujarat University. All these universities have framed rules governing admission to post graduate degree an
