MD seats reduction not on: HC

MUMBAI, October 5: The Bombay High Court in an interim relief has overruled the justification of the recommendation made by the Medical Cou...

MUMBAI, October 5: The Bombay High Court in an interim relief has overruled the justification of the recommendation made by the Medical Council of India (MCI) for reduction of seats in certain MD courses and ordered for redeclaration of the same.

In a recommendation dated April 17, 1997, the MCI limited the seats for postgraduate courses in Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Orthopaedics, on the basis of an inspection report of January 1989.

In its order dated October 1, Justice Ashok Agarwal and Justice J A Patil observed that the MCI has no proof of the inadequacy of the infrastructure available with the medical colleges in Maharashtra for imparting post graduate medical education. It also has no data in regard to the postgraduate teachers at present available for the aforesaid courses, says the interim order. In the circumstances, the basis of the MCI recommendations of April 1997 cannot be enforced, observed the judges.

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Arguing on behalf of the MCI, Advocate B M Chatterjee stated that it has the right to fix the number of seats from time to time for post graduate and graduate education in medical colleges under Section 10 (A) of Medical Council Act.However, the judges felt that though MCI has a right, they cannot exert the same on the basis of the ’89 report. Hence, the judges have given the council the liberty to assess the quality of education afresh.

Pending the hearing and final disposal of the writ petition, the interim order directs the respondent authorities to redeclare nine registrations in Obstetrics & Gynaecology and three registrations in Orthopaedics.

The public interest litigation was filed by Dr Raiyomand Dalal and others, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, challenging the legality and validity of corrigendum dated July 3, 1997 issued by the dean of Grant Medical College, which moved for the cancellation of seats in the respective departments, available in municipal medical colleges.

Advocate V M Thorat who appeared on behalf of the petitioners said: “The Dean of Grant Medical college which is the admission centre of the five city medical colleges will have to redeclare the seats, allow the students to claim the same and after that, the seats should be allocated on the basis of merit.”