SC to HCs: Don’t tamper with rules
The Supreme Court has come down heavily on the high courts for setting up a new trend of allowing the medical colleges in the country to increase the seats beyond the quota fixed for them by regulator Medical Council of India and termed such a practice as nothing but “destruction” of the rule of law.
In a strongly worded verdict, a bench of Justices H.L. Dattu and C.K. Prasad was more critical of the HCs allowing increase of seats through interim orders without going into the merits of the case of students claiming admission beyond limit fixed by the MCI.
“We cannot imagine anything more destructive of the rule of law than a direction by the (a high) court to allow continence of such students, whose admissions are found illegal in the ultimate analysis,” said the bench in the verdict pronounced on Wednesday and made available to the media on Thursday.
The verdict came on the petition of the MCI challenging Karnataka HC’s August 24, 2011 interim order permitting JSS Medical College from the state to have intake of 200 students for the MBBS course instead of 150 fixed by the MCI by taking into account the infrastructure faculties available with the institution.
The top court pointed out that the increase of seats was allowed by the HC despite the MCI’s board of governors rejecting the report of its inspection team regarding the infrastructure facilities, including clinical and faculty positions for permitting increase of the seats.
“In most of such cases when finally the issue is decided against the college, the welfare and plight of the students are ultimately projected to arouse sympathy of the courts. It results in very awkward and difficult situation. If on ultimate analysis it is found that the college’s claim for increase is untenable, in such an event the admission of the students with reference to the increased seats shall be illegal,” the top court said.
Emphasising the role of the SC to check such illegality, the bench said “this court is entrusted with the task to administer the rule of law and upholding its majesty...”
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