Health resisted Kannur Medical College admission

Kochi: The internal notes which led to the February 14 order by the health department regularising the admissions in Kannur Medical College for academic year 2016-17 show stiff resistance by the department which pointed out the illegality of the move. In the note, the joint secretary concerned pointed out that the advice of the law secretary that the government should check only if the students were NEET-qualified went against the spirit of the ordinance.

That would be against the spirit of the ordinance which sought to regularise the admissions of the students who were qualified and eligible as per the rank list prepared on the basis of NEET for admission in the discipline of medicine as per laws and orders in force applicable for the academic year 2016-17. Since the ordinance lays emphasis on “the laws and orders in force”, it would be improper for the government to regularise the admissions only on the basis of NEET.

However, additional chief secretary Rajeev Sadanandan overruled the objection citing the Cabinet decision. “The law secretary’s remarks have been endorsed by the cabinet,” he noted in the file.  “All the points raised above had been raised by the administrative (health) department in the past and overruled. There is no need to keep harping on the same issue.”