Back
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AND LADAKH AT JAMMU
N. Kotiswar Singh, Rajesh Sekhri, JJ.
Sara Banoo - Appellant
Versus
Ayeda Jehan and ors. – Respondents
LPA No. 41 of 2024, CAV No. 307 of 2024
Decided On : 27-03-2024
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. background facts regarding the appeal (Para 1 , 2 , 4) |
| 2. details on admission and seat allocation rules (Para 3 , 6 , 7) |
| 3. admission process for mds courses. (Para 5) |
| 4. dispute arising from allocation based on merit (Para 8 , 14) |
| 5. merit-cum-preference for course allocation. (Para 9) |
| 6. merit-cum-preference principle requires renegotiation of course allotments. (Para 12 , 44) |
| 7. court's interpretation of allocation rules (Para 15 , 19 , 53) |
| 8. legal arguments on admission irregularities. (Para 16 , 21 , 22) |
| 9. discusses the implications of late filings for remedy in admission disputes. (Para 25) |
| 10. judgment and ordered remedies (Para 54 , 62 , 63) |
ORDER :
N. Kotiswar Singh, J.
1. The present appeal has been preferred against the judgment and order dated 21.02.2024 (for short the ‘impugned order’) rendered by the learned Single Judge in WP (C) No. 2755/2023, by which the learned Single Judge allowed the writ petition filed by the writ petitioner/Respondent No. 1 herein, seeking quashment of the allotment of the discipline/stream of “Paedodontics and Preventive Dentistry” to the Appellant and “Oral Pathology and Microbiology” in favour of the petitioner (Respondent No. 1 herein) and directing swapping of these disciplines allotted to them.
2. Before we deal with the issues raised in this appeal, it may be apposite to refer briefly to the background facts of the case.
ii. In the merit list so declared, the Respondent No. 1-Ayeda Jehan had secured 725th Rank in NEET and 19th Rank in the UT. On the other hand, the Appellant herein (Respondent No. 10 in the writ petition) - Sara Banoo had secured 13991st Rank in NEET and 65th Rank in the UT. Thus, the Respondent No. 1 was admittedly higher in ranking.
iii. As per the NEET-PG Schedule-2023, the whole process of admission of NEET-PG Session 2023-24 needed to be completed by 10.10.2023 and the Academic Session for PG Courses to be commenced by 05.09.2023.
iv. As far as the number of seats available for the Session 2023-24 is concerned, there were 21 seats available for the UTs of J&K and Ladakh which were distributed in terms of S.O 127 dated 20.04.2020 read with JK Reservation Rules, 2005. As per the aforesaid S.O 127 there is 10% reservation for RBA Category which means that out of 21 total MDS seats for Session 2023-24, 02 seats are reserved for RBA category.
| Total Seats for MDS | 21 |
| OM Category | 10 |
| STK/STL (4% of 21) | 01 |
| RBA Category (10%) | 02 |
| Other reserved categories | 09 |
| OPERATIVE | S.O 127 IMPLEMENTATION | MDS 2023 | |||||||||||
| NEET-PG (MDS)-2023 | Government Seats of MDS | ||||||||||||
| S.No | Discipline | GDC-SGR | Open Merit | EWS | Category | GDC-MU | Open Merit | Category | Open Merit | EWS | Category | Total | |
| 1 | Conservative Dentistry & Endodontics | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2 | Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Periodontics | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 4 | Prosthodontics, Crown & Bridge | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 32 | |
| 5 | Oral Medicine & Radiology | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Merit-based admissions must prioritize candidates based on their scores, overriding allocations made without adherence to the principles of merit cum preference under the applicable reservation rules....
The central legal point established in the judgment is the importance of adhering to Reservation Rules, 2005, particularly Rule 17, in the allotment of disciplines/streams for MDS courses. The court ....
: Benefit of reservation must reach deserving candidate in category and is not eaten away or affected by a candidate of reserved category, who, on strength of his merit, has equal or better merit tha....
Candidates securing higher marks than unreserved category cannot claim reservation benefits unless explicitly provided by state policy; constitutional provisions require formal policy to confer reser....
The main legal point established in the judgment is the application of the 'merit cum preference' principle for seat allotment, as well as the interpretation and application of Rule 17 of the Jammu a....
Rules governing admissions to reserved categories in education must ensure continuity of eligible students, underscoring their rights of access to post-graduate courses.
The main legal point established in the judgment is that the Medical Council of India was not competent to make regulations contrary to the mandate of Article 15(4) of the Constitution, and that the ....
An indispensable Tool for Legal Professionals, Endorsed by Various High Court and Judicial Officers
Please visit our Training & Support
Center or Contact Us for assistance
Scan Me!
India’s Legal research and Law Firm App, Download now!
For Daily Legal Updates, Join us on :
Back to top
