Mumbai, May 12: A student was wrongfully admitted to an MBBS degree programme at a prestigious Mumbai college in 2012 as an OBC on a non-creamy layer certificate, according to the Bombay High Court. Despite this, the court did not cancel the student's admission because she had finished the course while recognising the need for doctors in the country. Removing her qualification would "be a national loss, as citizens would be deprived of one doctor in our country, where the ratio of doctors to population is very low," a division bench of Justices A S Chandurkar and Jitendra Jain stated, according to TOI.

The High Court further added that her parents' unfair tactics to gain her admission in the OBC (Other Backward Classes) category had "deprived another eligible candidate" from his/her rightful seat. Either You Pay Them, or You Don’t Have Internship: SC Displeased With Medical Colleges Charging Rs One Crore Fees, and Not Paying Stipends to MBBS Interns.

Court Imposes Hefty Penalty on Medical Student

In February 2014, the Lokmanya Tilak Medical College in Sion cancelled her admission to the MBBS programme. On the other hand, the HC stated that since time had passed and she had finished her course in 2017 due to the temporary orders that let her study, she should receive her degree immediately. According to the interim orders in effect since February 2014, the petitioner has finished the MBBS programme. As a result, the court stated that it would not be appropriate to revoke the petitioner's qualification at this time, especially as the petitioner is now competent to practice medicine. Ukraine-Returned Medical Students Cannot Be Accommodated in Indian Universities, Centre Tells Supreme Court.

According to the HC, the pupil was admitted after her father provided false information and failed to reveal that the student's mother was employed by the municipal corporation. The High Court ordered the student to pay the course costs as an open category student within three months and also to pay an additional penalty of  Rs 50,000 to the college. The investigation of OBC admissions to MBBS programmes based on non-creamy layer certificates was carried out in 2012 in response to a petition. The investigation included every accepted student.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 12, 2024 01:48 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).