Trust demands Quota for Sunni Muslim Comminity for MBBS admissions at Kanachur Medical College

Bengaluru: The Kanachur Islamic Education Trust has recently filed a petition in the High Court of Karnataka, seeking a directive to the state government for allocation of MBBS medical seats to Sunni Muslim community-alone, at Kanachur Medical College, Mangaluru.

However, the state authorities have opposed the plea on the ground that the National Commission for Minority Educational Institution has issued a certificate to the Trust stating that it is a religious minority (Muslim institution) and therefore, it would be wrong on its part to insist on Sunni sect seat allotments, alone.

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday reserved its verdict on the matter

The petitioning institution contended that it has been legally declared a religious minority educational institution-lawfully; and is now managed by Sunni Muslims, therefore, it legally had the right to indicate its “choice of preference” for students allocated to the institution, through common counselling.

The petition questioned the July 4, 2018 rejection of the Department of Medical Education, of the institution's claim that it was established for looking after the educational needs of members of the Sunni Muslim Community.

In May this year, the trust in a written communiqué to the department had requested that allotment preference to it be that of Sunni Muslim community students. 82 of 150 seats that fall under the institutional/management quota seats for first-year MBBS course for 2018-19 fall within this selection purview it stated. It further emphasized that it was open to taking in any religion or caste students for the remaining 38 Government quota seats, which happen to be 25% of the total number reported the

Hindu.

The trust in its petition also requested that the preferred Sunni Muslim student should apart from producing a religion certificate granted by the revenue authorities, should also be made to secure a certificate from the Sunni Jam Iyyathul Ulama, Mangaluru.

Further, the petition highlighted that St. John’s Medical College, Bengaluru, a Christian minority institution, was being allowed to admit its “preferred students”. The petition further added that the state government was allowing religious minority institutions to do the same.