Admission eligibility in medical courses cannot be contingent upon probation status when regularization is mandated without a probationary period.

JUDGMENT

This writ petition has been filed seeking various directions including direction to respondents 2 and 3 to admit the petitioner in the reserved seat of Post Graduate Medical Course in general surgery in the service quota in the year 2025.

2. Petitioner is working as a lecturer in the Department of General Surgery at the Government Medical College, Ernakulam with effect from 04.12.2012. Though the appointment to the said post was made in accordance with the Rules in force, except for the petitioner, all others were regularised. In the meantime, petitioner obtained selection to the PG Course as an in-service candidate, however, he was not granted admission, as his probation had not been declared. In such circumstances, petitioner approached this Court in this writ petition seeking a direction to reserve a seat for him in the PG Medical Course and also to grant him admission.

3. It is appropriate to mention that, in the meantime petitioner had approached the Kerala Administrative Tribunal in O.P.(KAT) No.143/2022 for regularisation of his service. Tribunal allowed the original petition, which was challenged by the respondents without success. Finally, the Supreme Court disposed the State’s SLP on 18.12.2024, after observing that petitioner’s appointment into service shall be reckoned as 04.03.2016, but the entry into the cadre shall be treated as 15.12.2024.

4. Despite the above, petitioner’s probation was not being declared and hence petitioner’s admission to the PG course as an in-service candidate was under a cloud of doubt and hence petitioner approached this Court in this writ petition.

5. During the pendency of this writ petition, an interim order was issued, directing the reservation of one seat in the in-service candidate’s quota for PG course. While so, the Supreme Court had, by an order dated 28.01.2026 in M.A.No.2722/2025 in C.A.No.14675/2024 declared that the regularisation of the petitioner shall be without any probation period.

6. Since petitioner’s regularisation has been ordered by the Supreme Court to be without any probation period, the requirement of probation cannot be insisted upon by the respondents in respect of the petitioner, under any circumstances whatsoever. Therefore, the petitioner is eligible to be admitted in the seat for General Surgery, already reserved as per interim orders of this Court.

Hence, there will be a direction to respondents 2 and 3 to admit the petitioner to the seat already ordered to be kept vacant for PG in General Surgery for the year 2025, without insisting upon his probation to be declared.

The writ petition is allowed as above.

sd/-