PUDUCHERRY:Those medical students who were allotted PG medical seats by the Centac have been left in the lurch after the Supreme Court dismissed their writ petition for admission in the four deemed medical institutions here.
As per the orders passed on November 24 on a writ petition by the students, Justice Arun Mishra and Justice Mohan M Shantanagoudar passed an order which said, “ Considered their petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution; it cannot be entertained.”
Note that Article 32 provides the right to Constitutional remedies which means that a person has the right to move the higher courts for getting his/her fundamental rights protected.
“Apart from that, a prayer was made for admission in 2017-2018, but the academic session is already over for the purpose of admission. Hence, writ petition is dismissed. If the petitioners have any grievances, they are free to approach the High Court,” said the order.
In all, 27 students were allotted seats in the third round of Centac counseling for admission to the four Deemed Medical Universities (DMUs), on the orders of Lt Governor after the cancellation of mop up counseling. The students were given assurance that the DMUs would admit them on the basis of the fee fixed by the Fee Committee and the DMUs would not charge them the high fee fixed for various courses.
However, the DMUs did not admit the students on payment of government fee and hence they moved the High Court. The High Court gave an order fixing an interim fee of Rs 10 lakh for admission and directed the MHRD to set up a committee for fee fixation. Only three students were admitted on the fee ordered by the High Court, while the remaining 24 students were refused admission. These students were turned away stating that there was no vacancy.
Meanwhile, based on a special leave petition filed by the deemed universities, the Supreme Court ordered that the committee constituted on the basis of the High Court order for fee fixation shall also not proceed with the matter further.
The apex court further directed that the High Court not to proceed with the writ petition on admissions to deemed medical colleges as the Supreme Court was going to dwell upon the entire issue since the matter pertains to deemed universities across the country.
Subsequently, all the students who could not secure admission moved the Supreme Court seeking admission.
Stating that the power tussle between Lt Governor Kiran Bedi and Chief Minister V Narayanasamy was affecting the people, AIADMK blamed Kiran Bedi for spoiling the future of students by her inappropriate intervention in the admission process.
AIADMK Legislature party leader A Anbazhagan said that it was due to the assurance given by the L-G, the students opted for deemed universities.
Moreover, since the L-G approached the CBI for probing the alleged irregularities, the DMUs refused to surrender MBBS seats to Puducherry government quota (as they had been doing in earlier years ) and opted for filling up seats on all India merit basis from NEET list. This deprived Puducherry students of their rightful seats, the party leader added.
Makings
of a scam
The CBI had begun probe in September with regard to PG medical admissions in private colleges
Top officials were said to have colluded with private medical institutions to flout norms and admit ineligible students to postgraduate courses
Probe had begun on a complaint by Lt Governor
Kiran Bedi
Centac Chairman G Narendra Kumar and managing directors of private medical colleges were among those booked, apart from Former Health Secretary B R Babu and Director of Health and Family Welfare Services Dr K V Raman