Plea to quash order reserving 85 per cent seats to Tamil Nadu board pupils

Chennai: A CBSE student aspiring to do a MBBS course has approached the Madras High Court to quash an order of the state government, which earmarked 85 per cent of the seats available in the state quota to students who have studied in Tamil Nadu State Board and the remaining 15 per cent to the students who have studied in CBSE and other boards for admission to MBBS/ BDS courses for the academic year 2017-18. Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, before whom the petition filed by C. Darnish Kumar came up for hearing, ordered notice to the state government and posted to July 5 further hearing of the case.

According to the petitioner, he scored high marks in XII standard and also cleared Neet exam with high marks.  The Central government and the Medical Council of India made it clear that for the academic year 2017-18, the admission to all seats in the MBBS and BDS courses in the country will be on the basis of marks obtained in Neet and the rank list prepared by states will solely be on the basis of Neet marks.

Regulation 5 of the Regulations of Graduate Medical Education recognises only three categories - namely students belonging to SC, ST or other BCs, students with locomotory disability of lower limbs and other students. However, the state government, through an order dated June 22, directed that 85 % of the seats available in the state quota will be reserved /allocated to the students who have studied in TN state board and the remaining 15 to the students, who have studied in CBSE and other boards for admission to MBBS/ BDS courses for 2017-18.

The state government cannot dilute the Central enactment by providing for reservations by forming new categories. Moreover, further classification on the basis of board of education would result in less meritorious students getting admission. Such segregation amounts to discriminating students on the basis of their school board and violates Article 14 of Constitution, he added.