HC awards Rs 5 lakh compensation to Dalit BDS aspirant

Finding fault with officials for setting a humanly impossible deadline of 90 minutes to a Dalit BDS course aspirant girl to get her seat alloted in a college 450 km away from here, resulting in her forfeiting it, the Madras High Court has awarded her a Rs five lakh compensation.
The court was disposing of a petition by the candidate, A.E Durga, who lost an opportunity to pursue BDS course this year, because she was alloted the seat on the last date of admission and asked to join the college in Madurai the same day.
She was given admission card at 3 p.M. On September 30, and asked to go to Best Dental College in Madurai before 4.30 p.M. the same day. When she went to the college the next day, the college told her that since she did not report by the deadline, the seat was alloted to another.

Justice V Ramasubramanian, criticising the deadline, said "even if she owned a private jet, it would not have been possible for her to reach Madurai before the closing hours of the office of Best Dental Science College on the same day."
September 30 was the Supreme Court-set last date for completing all admissions in MBBS and BDS courses in the country.
Noting that the court could neither extend the deadline nor create additional seat or cancel the admission of another student admitted in her vacancy, the judge said "though she is not entitled to admission in view of non-availability of vacancies, she cannot be left without a remedy, especially after I have found that she was not at fault and that the selection committee was at fault.

"She is a candidate belonging to the Scheduled Caste. Her dreams of a great future was lit up for a short while, by the order of allotment issued on September 30, but was blown off within a few hours."

The September 30 counselling was in clear violation of the orders of the apex court. "Therefore, the selection committee is obliged to compensate her in monetary terms," he said ordering Rs five lakh as compensation which would be "just and proper."
In his response, Director of Medical Education had said all colleges having BDS vacancies had been informed about counselling done on the last date. As per Clause 43(c) of the prospectus, all selected and allotted candidates had paid the deposit of Rs 25,000, and hence they were deemed to have joined on that day itself.

Except three colleges, including the Best Dental Science College in Madurai, all other self-financing dental colleges admitted students allotted by the selection committee, he added.