A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J Sreenivas of the Telangana High Court on Thursday gave the state government 24 hours to reconsider the petitioner’s status as a local candidate for admission into MBBS and BDS courses.
The bench was hearing a writ petition filed by Chepuri Avinash, challenging a notification issued on August 27 which classified him as a non-local candidate for medical admissions. Senior counsel appearing for Avinash argued that in the previous year, he was treated as a local candidate under a court order dated August 31, 2023, and that this year’s classification as non-local was unjust.
Counsel further contended that Avinash, who was selected by the Government of Telangana to study at Military School, Dehradun, meets the criteria under Rule 3(a)(ii) of the Telangana Medical and Dental Colleges Admissions Rules, 2017. Thus, he should be recognised as a local candidate for admissions into MBBS and BDS courses. After reviewing the arguments, the bench noted the case appeared genuine and gave the authorities 24 hours to reconsider Avinash’s status.
GO 33 hiking ST quota discriminatory: Petitioner
The Telangana High Court on Thursday sought the response of the state government to a writ petition challenging GO 33 issued by the Tribal Welfare department raising reservations for Scheduled Tribes education and government services from 6% to 10%.
A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J Sreenivas was hearing a petition filed by Aadhaar Society chairman Gondi Venkataramulu challenging GO 33 dated September 30, 2022.
The petitioners argued that the GO was illegal, unconstitutional and violated Articles 14, 15, and 16 of the Constitution, which ensure equality and non-discrimination. They also claimed that the order contravenes several landmark judgments of the Supreme Court.
In their plea, the petitioners sought a direction to the state government to conduct a comprehensive and rigorous empirical inquiry into the socioeconomic conditions of the STs in Telangana and also identify the most disadvantaged groups within the ST community and propose a sub-classification, which would exclude the “creamy layer” from availing reservations.
The petitioners contended that such an exercise was essential to ensure that the benefits of reservations are extended to those who are genuinely in need, particularly the more deprived and marginalised sections of the ST community.