MBBS Admissions : HC notice to Chandigarh on 85% domicile reservation

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court in response to a student petition has issued a notice of motion to the Union Territory of Chandigarh. The student has alleged that outsiders from the union territory of Chandigarh clearing their class XII only in the UT were getting an entitlement of 85% reservation in their own state as well as, in the UT for admission to medical courses.

The act, the petitioner alleged was detrimental to the interest of bonafide city residents.

Responding to the plea filed by Sabhya Kamal through Counsel, Abhinav Gupta against the UT Administration and other respondents, the Bench of Justice Mahesh Grover and Justice Mahabir Singh Sindhu made clear that the admission in the SC category, of which the petitioner was a member, would be subjected to the outcome of the writ petition.

“It is made clear that the counselling may go on but the admission made the SC category, with which the petitioner is concerned, shall be subjected to the outcome of the writ petition,” the Bench reaffirmed.

The petitioner had in her petition asked for court directions to the UT Administration to work out a proper eligibility/domicile criterion for candidates seeking admission against reservation of 85 per cent provided for the state quota/UT pool.

She had also requested the quashing of a clause in the eligibility criteria and the admission procedure for 77 UT pool seats, which reads, “The candidates should have passed Class XII examination (qualifying examination) from school/colleges recognised by the Chandigarh Administration and situated in the Union Territory of Chandigarh as a regular student.”

Dubbing the above clause as illegal, arbitrary, illogical and unfair, senior advocates Abhinav Gupta and Girish Agnihotri added that it besides not fulfilling objectives for incorporation was also irrational.

The counsels also asked for a stay on the admission process in Chandigarh during the petition’s pendency as the final merit list was to be uploaded on June 26 and the first counseling to commence on 2^nd July.

The objective behind 85 percent reservation for bonafide city residents said Gupta was to ensure that students were able to get admission within their own state without having to go distances.

Gupta revealed that the admission prospectus in Chandigarh was absolutely silent on the issue of a bonafide UT Chandigarh domicile. It simply provided for admission to any candidate who happened to do his/her Class XII from any school recognized by the Chandigarh Administration and was located in the UT.

“The issue is very serious in nature as it tends to create an unfair competition between the candidates who are bonafide residents of Chandigarh and those who come for Class XII from Chandigarh just in order to take advantage of the reservation provided for bonafide residents of Chandigarh,” Gupta asserted reported the Hindu.