CHENNAI: The first bench of Madras High Court has impleaded the Union HRD Ministry, UGC and five medical colleges in Karaikkal and Puducherry as party-respondents in a PIL to declare that the fees payable for admission in PG medical courses in self-financing and deemed-to-be universities in the Union Territory shall be as fixed/to be fixed by the fee committe.
The bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar ordered the impleadment when a PIL from advocate VBR Menon came up on Friday. It also issued notice to S Srinivasan, Assistant Solicitor General and to the five colleges, including Aarupadai Veedu Medical College, Kirumanpakkam, Puducherry, returnable by June 13.
The petitioner also prayed for a direction to Puducherry Government to provisionally admit all candidates issued provisional allotment orders by the Centralised Admission Committee for admissions into PG medical courses in self-financing colleges and Deemed to be Universities of Puducherry, by collecting fees fixed by Puducherry Fee Committee by its order dated May 24 last, pending final fixation of fees by panel.
According to the petitioner, counselling for seven medical colleges in Puducherry had been completed and PA orders had been issued by CENTAC, Puducherry. Of the above seven, three are affiliated colleges and the other four deemed universities. In the case of affiliated colleges, some of them are accepting the fee of Rs 5.5 lakh fixed by the Puducherry Fee Committee but are demanding to execute ‘post-course’ service bonds and undertakings from the candidates.
The deemed universities are not accepting the fees fixed by the Fee Committee and are demanding exorbitant fees of around Rs 40-50 lakh, apart from demanding execution of post-education service bonds and undertakings.
As the above demands are totally illegal, unreasonable and violative of the orders of the Supreme Court, the petitioner sought the intervention of the court.