W.P.(C) 4852/2020

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

Judgment reserved on: 13.07.2022

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Judgment delivered on: 29.07.2022

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W.P.(C) 4852/2020 & CM APPL. 5299/2021, CM APPL.

41013/2021

DR. ABHINAV KUMAR & ORS.

..... Petitioner

Through:

Mr. Varun Singh, Advocate

versus

UNION OF INDIA, THROUGH SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF

HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE & ANR.

..... Respondent

Through:

Mr. Ripu Daman Bhardwaj, Advocate

for UOI.

Mr. T. Singhdev with Ms. Michelle

Biakthansangi Das and Ms. Sumangla

Swami, Advs. for R-2.

CORAM:

HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SUBRAMONIUM PRASAD

J U D G M E N T

SATISH CHANDRA SHARMA, C.J.

1.

The Petitioner before this Court has filed the present petition under

Article 226 read with Article 227 of the Constitution of India, for quashment

of Regulation 9(3) of the Postgraduate Medical Education (Amendment)

This is a digitally signed Judgement.

NEUTRAL CITATION NO: 2022/DHC/002843

W.P.(C) 4852/2020

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Regulations, 2018 (as amended on 05.04.2018) to the extent that it provides

for minimum marks of 50^th percentile as a mandatory requirement for

admission to postgraduate courses, on the ground that the said requirement

is arbitrary, unjustified and contrary to Article 14, Article 19 (1)(g) and

Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

2.

The facts of the case reveal that the petition has been filed as a Public

Interest Litigation by three doctors seeking admission into postgraduate

courses. The Petitioner No.1 obtained his MBBS Degree in the year 2018

and appeared in the NEET PG Entrance Test on 05.01.2020. He secured

180 marks in the NEET PG Entrance Test, and is working at GB Pant

Hospital. The Petitioner No.2 obtained his MBBS Degree in June 2018 and,

thereafter, appeared in the NEET PG Entrance Test, scoring 108 marks.

Similarly, the Petitioner No.3 also appeared in the NEET PG Entrance Test

and scored 160 marks. He is also working at GB Pant Hospital.

3.

The Petitioners’ contention is that the Medical Council of India (MCI)

introduced an All-India Entrance Examination called as National Eligibility-

cum Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to MBBS and postgraduate

courses by amending the Post-Graduate Medical Education Regulations on

21.12.2010. The Post-Graduate Medical Education Regulations were again

amended on 15.02.2012, and the percentile system was introduced which

provided that in order to obtain admission to a postgraduate course in an

academic year, a student must obtain minimum marks at 50^th Percentile in

the NEET.

4.

The Petitioners’ further contention is that the amending Regulation

was challenged before the Hon’ble Supreme Court by some institutions and,

in the case of Christian Medical College , Vellore and Others v. Union of

This is a digitally signed Judgement.

NEUTRAL CITATION NO: 2022/DHC/002843

W.P.(C) 4852/2020

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India and Others, (2014) 2 SCC 305, the Regulations were held to be ultra

vires. It has further been submitted that again in the case of Medical

Council of India v. Christian Medical College, Vellore and Others, (2016)

4 SCC 342, the Hon’ble Supreme Court rendered a decision holding that the

judgment delivered in Christian Medical College , Vellore (supra) needed to

be reviewed and that the process of admissions based on All-India

Examination for common merit list for admission to medical colleges was in

order.

5.

The Petitioners further stated that in the year 2016, the Indian Medical

Council Act, 1956 was amended by Indian Medical Council (Amendment)

Act, 2016, and the amending Act inserted Section 10D and Section 33(mb)

into the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956. The statutory provisions brought

into force by way of amendment, provided for a uniform entrance

examination to all medical educational institutions in respect of under-

graduate courses as well as postgraduate courses to be held by the

designated authority.

6.

The Peti