Following the Madras High Court direction seeking the list of students admitted without Centac counselling, more than 50 students who have joined postgraduate medical courses in self-financing and deemed universities are in a quandary now.
At least 114 candidates were selected through Centac for PG medical courses under the government quota. Of which, 62 opted to study in self-financed institutions and 52 in deemed universities. A representative of the Pondicherry State Students and Parents Welfare Association, said that a total of 52 candidates selected through government quota in both the self-financed medical institutions and deemed universities could not join the courses as the institutions had filled up these seats.
The Madras High Court on Monday had issued notices to the Health and Family Welfare Services Department, Centac, and the three self-financing and four deemed universities to furnish the names of the students who have been admitted without following the counselling procedure and also to implead the students as respondents in the case.
Advocate V.B.R. Menon, who had filed the PIL, related to the alleged irregularities in the PG medical admissions in Puducherry in a press release, said, “The Madras High Court had actually disposed off my contempt petition by directing the Centac to admit eligible students to the vacancies as reported by one of the Deemed Universities.” He further said, “With regard to the other three deemed university colleges, as ‘nil vacancies’ had been reported by them as on the date of the impugned order i.e., June 16, the Madras High Court found it appropriate to close the contempt of court proceedings against them after giving me the liberty to file a separate writ petition against the illegalities and omissions or commissions observed during the hearing of the contempt petition.” The court has clearly recorded the illegalities in the admission of students into the above Deemed University Colleges as well as the omissions or commissions committed by Centac. It has also given the affected students the liberty to approach the court through writ petitions to obtain relief by citing their individual cases, he added.
Bedi welcomes move
Welcoming the High Court decision, Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi said,“The above evidence sought by the High Court is not going to be easy for private medical colleges in Puducherry to get away. This is a strong message to medical institutions to conduct admissions in a transparent manner and as per the directions of the Supreme Court and Medical Council of India. They have to go by NEET list and cleared in counselling and not auction medical seats behind the scene,” she said.
