HYDERABAD: A bench of the Telangana High Court on Thursday allowed a batch of 53 writ petitions challenging the validity of Rule 3(a) of the Telangana Medical and Dental Colleges Admission (MBBS and BDS courses) Rules, 2017, as amended by GO 33, dated July 19, 2024.
The petitioners, who are permanent residents of Telangana, sought directions from the bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe to be treated as local candidates for admission to MBBS and BDS courses under the 85% local quota rule in the medical colleges in the state. They argued that Rule 3(a), which pertains to the criteria for local candidates, violated their rights, as they had completed their Intermediate education in Andhra Pradesh and other neighbouring states but were still permanent residents of Telangana.
The court, after hearing the arguments presented, directed that Rule 3(a) should be interpreted to include students who are permanent residents of Telangana, even if they had completed their education outside the state. The court clarified that the petitioners would be eligible for admission under the local quota, provided they can prove their domicile or permanent residency in Telangana.
The court also noted the absence of clear guidelines from the government to determine a student’s permanent residency or domicile status. As a result, the bench granted the government the liberty to frame appropriate guidelines to define when a student qualifies as a permanent resident of the state. The University will then apply these guidelines on a case-by-case basis.
2017 Rules already upheld by HC & SC: Govt
Counsel for the petitioners highlighted that Rule 3(a) was similar to a previously challenged provision — Rule 3(III)(B) of the 2017 Rules — which had been struck down by a bench of the high court on August 29, 2023. They argued that the amended Rule 3(a) did not address the concerns raised in the earlier ruling and should therefore be struck down.
The state government, represented by the Advocate General, defended the amendments, stating that the 2017 Rules, as amended by GO 72 in 2023, had already been upheld by both the Telangana High Court and the Supreme Court. The A-G pointed out that the government was mandated to redefine the “local area” after 10 years, necessitating the changes in the rules.