CHENNAI/COIMBATORE: As anticipated, the State government will move the Supreme Court against the Madras High Court’s order against its GO providing 85 per cent reservation for State Board students in medical admissions. State Health Minister C Vijaya Basker, health secretary J Radhakrishnan and other senior officials, who were in Delhi to meet the Union Health Minister to seek an exemption for the State from NEET, are exploring all legal avenues.
“The State will appeal to the Supreme Court,” said the Director of Medical Education Dr A Edwin Joe, while sources said Union Minister J P Nadda responded positively to the request when the team from Chennai, accompanied by Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai, met him on Monday.
The move to appeal was expected, as the issue has by now gathered political significance and brings with it concerns that admissions to MBBS and BDS courses are likely to be delayed further, leaving hundreds of medical aspirants in a quandary.
As per the Supreme Court-fixed admission schedule, medical admission has to be completed by the end of August. With just a month’s time remaining, medical aspirants are in a fix. The entire confusion surrounding medical admission was an absolute nightmare, said Munusamy, father of a medical aspirant.
“Now, it has come to a climax. Even if the State government goes for an appeal, the Supreme Court may give its verdict within a day or two. Since the Directorate of Medical Education is keeping all lists ready, counselling can be completed before the August 31 deadline,” he hoped.
The delay in resolving this has also affected the admission to other professional courses like engineering and agriculture. For instance, R S Kiruthika from Namakkal, who secured first rank in the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University ranking for agricultural courses, is eagerly awaiting the commencement of medical admission.If a student who has obtained a seat in a top engineering college during admission counselling decides to abandon it in favour of a medical course, the engineering seat is likely to go vacant, as there is no second round counselling in the engineering admission, explained an academic.
Terming it an expected verdict, Dr G R Ravindranath, general secretary, Doctors Association for Social Equality (DASE), pointed out there was no constitutional provision to provide reservation on the basis of the State or Central Board. “The State government should have thought this through before coming out with the order allocating 85 per cent reservation for State Board students.”
The only solution, he added, was to obtain the President’s assent for the two Bills adopted by the State Assembly. Echoing him, legal experts say ordinance was no longer a question, now that the Assembly had adopted the Bills on NEET. “Education is in the Concurrent List, which means the State can make law and the Union government should give assent to the legislation,” said retired Madras High Court judge Justice D Hariparanthaman.
50,800
Total applications received for UG medical courses
3,430
Government quota seats
31,000
Applications received
26,325
State Board students
4,675
CBSE students
19,800
Applications for management quota seats