MBBS aspirant moves HC for EWS quota in pvt, unaided colleges

Nagpur: An MBBS aspirant knocked Nagpur bench of Bombay high court’s doors for implementation of 10% Economically Weaker Section (EWS) quota in the Maharashtra’s private and unaided medical colleges. He sought directives to respondents to increase seats in all these colleges with a view to accommodate more students under the EWS quota. He also prayed for stay on the ongoing MBBS admissions process for first year in private and unaided colleges for academic year 2019-20 till compliance of his prayers.
A division bench comprising justices Ravi Deshpande and Vinay Joshi on Tuesday issued notices to Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD) director, state chief secretary and others directing them to reply within two weeks. Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, State Medical Education and Drugs Department, Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER), State Common Entrance Test Cell, Board of governors in Supersession of Medical Council of India (MCI) and MCI chairman are other respondents in the case filed by 17-year-old Yash Bhutada through legal guardian Brjimohan Bhutada.
The petitioner, through counsel Shreerang Bhandarkar, contended that the respondents’ action of not providing 10% seats in EWS quota in private and unaided medical colleges is arbitrary as it deprived hundreds of deserving aspirants their right to study medical courses.
Quoting a gazette notification by Union law and justice ministry on January 3, 2007, Bhandarkar pointed out that Central Educational Institutions (Reservations in Admissions) Act, 2006, was introduced through it where admissions to the students belonging to SC, ST and OBC categories were reserved in the central government’s educational institutions.
On January 17 this year, the MHRD and department of higher education issued a memorandum for introducing EWS reservation in the central institutions. Later, the MHRD introduced the methodology of its implementation in these institutions in accordance with one hundred and third amendment of the Constitution of India.
Subsequently, the Union health ministry dispatched a letter to principal secretaries of all states and Union territories on January 29 for implementation of MHRD’s directives on the EWS quota. Accordingly, the state general administration department issued a government resolution (GR) letter on February 12, in pursuance to constitutional amendment, directing all educational institutions to provide 10% seats reserved for EWS candidates in their respective colleges, including private and unaided ones.
On June 4, the MCI issued a guidance note regarding process to be followed along with the prescribed pro forma for submission of applications for the EWS quota for aspirants across the country.
The petitioner demanded directives to respondents to admit him in any of private college on basis of his NEET score. He also prayed for declaring provisional seat matrix for 2019-20 academic session for MBBS admissions, issued on July 6, as illegal and against the constitution.