BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Monday directed Rajarajeshwari Medical College to refund the excess amount collected from medical students, over and above the fee prescribed by the state government for the academic year 2017-18 to 2020-21, with 6 per cent interest, as a recommendation made by the Admission Overseeing Committee.
Prohibiting the college from collecting excess fees from students for the remainder of the MBBS course, the court directed the state government to issue general directions to all colleges in this regard.
Further, the court directed the government to direct all colleges, including Rajarajeshwari Medical College, not to collect the excess fee, over and above the fee fixed by the state government and the KEA. “If the state government is really interested in the welfare of citizens, it is high-time that it issues such general directions,” the court said.
A division bench of justices B Veerappa and KS Hemalekha passed the order by allowing a batch of petitions filed by one G Harish and other students of Rajarajeshwari Medical College. MBBS seats were allotted to them through counselling for the academic year 2017-18 by the KEA.
After their admissions, the college demanded an excess fee for First-year MBBS. Now the students, who are in the Final -year of MBBS, have moved court in this regard.
The college’s counsel argued that the students had voluntarily paid the fee. Rejecting it, the court said the college, in all fairness, should have directed the students not to pay the excess fee, if the institution was running for education with good intention. “Being an educational institution, it should act like a ‘Guru’,” the high court said.