HC dismisses plea against admission to previous year students

The Madras High Court today dismissed a batch of petitions filed by students who passed Class XII in the 2014-15 academic year seeking not to consider students who had passed in the last academic year or earlier year for MBBS course.
Dismissing the petitions, a division bench comprising justices Satish K Agnihotri and M Venugopal said the Tamil Nadu Admission to Professional, Educational Institutions Act, 2006 does not bar any previous year students from competing in the subsequent years.
There was no rule or guidelines issued by the Medical Council of India or by any other competent authority preventing the previous year students applying for admission to MBBS course along with the current year students, the bench observed.

A batch of 61 petitions were filed by students who passed 12th standard in 2014-15 academic year seeking a direction to the authorities to confine the counselling of MBBS/BDS to those who have passed the examination in the academic year 2014-15.
The court had on June 22 reserved its orders on the petitions.
Director of Medical Education had earlier submitted that there was no rule or guidelines issued by Medical Council of India or by any other competent authority preventing previous year students applying for admission to MBBS course along with the current year students.
Any judicial review or interference in the educational matters "is very limited and interference is permissible only if there is any violation of any enactment, statutory rules or regulations or if it is found to be malafide or arbitrary", he had submitted.

Of the 2257 MBBS seats available in Government Medical Colleges, 1709 will go to 2014-15 students whereas only 548 will go to the students of earlier year batches which amounts only to 24 per cent of total seats, he had stated.