Madras High Court critical of awarding grace marks to MBBS Students

Chennai: The Madras High Court in response to a writ filed by a third-year MBBS student of Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Puducherry, seeking directions to the Pondicherry University to grant grace marks to him, declined to oblige the MBBS student. Justice Vaidyanathan remarked that if grace mark students were going to perform surgeries in the country, then patients would have to recover by the grace of God.

Justice S Vaidyanathan deriding the concept of grace marks being awarded in medical courses said that citizens were likely to be fooled if such practices were promoted.

" If a person who is studying ophthalmology is allowed to clear his papers with grace marks, the patients will have to regain eyesight only with the grace of God," he said.

The petitioner, S. Bharathi who had failed twice in the ophthalmology paper, had sought a direction to the Pondicherry University to grant her three grace marks to enable her clear it.

She had secured 29 marks in the theory paper, instead of the 32 required to pass.

Noting that up to five grace marks could be granted to a student as per the university rules, she had prayed for the relief