Court Asks For Report on NRI Seats in MBBS Courses

Madhya Pradesh High Court gave the Director of Medical Education (DME) seven days’ time on Nov. 21 to submit a report about the admissions that were done during the “mop-up round” of MBBS counselling and those under the NRI quota in private and government-run medical colleges.

This was done after a petition was filed by aggrieved students citing irregularities in admission procedures.

The officials of the medical education department told the court that records of all the students who were given admissions in the mop-up round of the MBBS counselling and those given admission under the NRI quota have been seized. The officials informed the court that a report would be submitted after the records are examined. Hearing this, the court granted them seven day’s time to submit their report.

A division bench of the high court comprising Justices Ravi Shankar Jha and Nandita Dubey on Nov. 11 ordered: “Director of medical education should immediately seize the entire record related to admissions made by all private colleges in the mop-up round as well as the admissions made with respect to NRI students.”

The order was issued after the court had heard a petition that stated that non-Madhya Pradesh students were granted admissions during the mop-up round and seats under the NRI quota were sold to ineligible candidates. The petition, lodged by Priyanshu Agarwal and four others, said that norms were set aside while admissions were given at private medical colleges of the state and 250 vacant seats were sold to “undeserving candidates.” The students with less marks than the petitioners were given admission, they alleged.

They cited the Supreme Court and High Court orders by saying that the Madhya Pradesh students should be given preference for admissions and only if the seats remain vacant, should they be filled by candidates from other states on basis of merit.

Out of the 138 admissions given under NRI quota, only one is genuine, according to social activist Vinay Parihar, the Hindustan Times reported. “The rest have been sold to the highest bidder,” he was quoted as saying by the publication.

The respondents in this case are the principal secretary health, director medical education, Aurobindo Medical College, Chirayu Medical College, R D Gargi Medical College, LN Medical College, Amaltas Medical College, RKDF Medical College and People’s Medical College.