A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court set aside a State government decision to provide 50 per cent seats exclusively to doctors of Kerala origin in admission to postgraduate medical super-specialty courses in 2014.
A Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice A.M. Shafique struck down the clause regarding the reservation in the prospectus for admission to postgraduate medical super-specialty courses as it found that it violated Article 15(1) of the Constitution (prohibition of discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them).
The Bench directed the State government and the Medical Education Director to redo the admission process which was completed on September 27, disregarding the clause and making consequential order regarding the admission.
Admissions stayedThe court made it clear that the admission made prior to the single judge’s interim order, dated September 12, 2014, staying the admission shall not be affected.
The directives were passed by the court while allowing an appeal filed by Mayank Bharti against a single-judge verdict rejecting a plea against the clause.
Intelligent criteriaUpholding the reservation, the single judge had observed that in the absence of compromise on the merit of the candidates, the classification for admission by a separate source based on intelligent criteria could be justified.
The State government had acted impartially and without any parochial interest by providing 50 per cent of the seats for general candidates as well, the single judge had said.
The petitioner had contended that a provision which made place of birth a relevant criteria for admission was arbitrary, discriminatory, and in violation of Articles 14 (equality before law) and 15 (prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion or place) of the Constitution.
Institutional preferenceHe pointed out that earlier, the government had extended the benefit of nativity to persons who had studied in Kerala, bringing in a concept of institutional preference. Had the reservation been based on the residency of the candidate in Kerala, it would have been reasonable.