HYDERABAD: In a setback to the Telangana government, a division bench of the High Court on Monday stayed operation of the GOs 115, 117 and 119 issued by the state medical and health department changing the ratio of category A (convenor quota), B (management quota) and C (NRI quota) seats for admission to MBBS course for academic year 2017-18, and giving a free hand to the unaided minority educational institutions to allot even the unfilled seats to other categories.
While restraining the respondent authorities from altering the proportion between the said categories from the ratio originally fixed under GO 130 issued on Sept 12, 2016, it issued notices to them for filing counter affidavits in two weeks.
“No reason or rhyme is stated in the impugned order for the sudden change of proportion. As a matter of fact, the impugned GO 115 dated July 5, 2017, by which the proportion is changed, is followed up by another GO 117 dated July 20, 2017, giving a free hand to the unaided minority educational institutions to allot even the unfilled seats to other categories. This is, prima facie, contrary to the law laid down by the Supreme Court in a series of judgments,’’ the bench said.
The bench of Justice V Ramasubramanian and Justice T Rajani passed this interim order on a writ petition filed by Basheeruddin Siddiqui and 13 other aspiring students against the impugned GOs. The special chief secretary to medical, health and family welfare, director of medical education, Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences and Deccan College of Medical Sciences were named as respondents.
Reasons for altering quota is too obvious: HC
Petitioners’ counsel B Rachna Reddy submitted that the authorities, vide the impugned GOs, changed the percentages of category A seats by reducing it to 50 percent and that of B and C categories enhanced to 35 percent and 15 percent respectively. As per GO 130, Category A has 60 percent and Categories B and C with 25 and 15 percent, respectively, for the unaided minority professional medical and dental institutions. The decision of the authorities is detriment to the petitioner medical students who would have secured a seat but for the illegal and unfair change of percentages after the declaration of results for NEET-2017 on June 23 this year.
She urged the court to set aside the impugned GOs in the interest of aspiring candidates. The bench said, “It appears that until last academic year (2016-17), the ratio of allotment of seats between Categories A, B and C in unaided minority professional institutions was 60, 25 and 15 percent. This is seen from GO 130. But, all of a sudden, on a representation purportedly made by one of the institution (Deccan College), the proportion has been altered to 50 percent for Category A, 35 pc for B and 15 pc for C category seats. The reasons for the above volte-face are too obvious to note.” The bench asked the respondents to file counter.