SC quashes Allahabad HC order on medical college

By T. Padmanabha Rao

NEW DELHI, APRIL 14. ``It is unfortunate that the High Court (HC) of Allahabad exercised the extra-ordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution (writ justification) in an extra- ordinary manner by granting interim mandatory relief to run a medical college, despite the fact that the Central Government has rejected such permission after obtaining recommendation from the Medical Council (MCI) twice,'' the Supreme Court has observed.

The extra-ordinary powers under Article 226 ``are to be exercised for rendering justice in accordance with law'' and medical colleges cannot be established except with the previous sanction of the Central Government as provided under the Indian Medical Council (IMC) Act, 1956, the Bench said.

Mr. Justice M. B. Shah, delivering the judgment of the Bench, set aside an interlocutory order of the HC dated October 11 last which granted interim mandatory relief to an education trust (respondent) to run a medical college though an earlier application to the Centre was rejected on June 4 last on the recommendation of the MCI.

The Bench, which included Mr. Justice M. Jagannadha Rao, noted that ``in hot haste, in a case where there was no urgency, the HC, by the impugned order, directed that operation of the Centre's order dated June 4 last shall be stayed''. Uttar Pradesh ``was also directed (by the HC) to allocate the students to the medical college for the purpose of admission''.

``It is to be stated that by granting stay of the order passed by the Centre it is difficult to hold that that would amount to permission to establish the medical college'', the Bench said.

``Unfortunately, by granting the interim mandatory order, without allowing the respondents (namely, the Union of India and others concerned in the writ petition) to file counter affidavit, the HC not only violated the orders for grant of interim relief, but has also violated the principles of natural judgment and has allowed the petition (of the trust before the HC) on the date of its admission'', the Bench commented.

The Bench held that ``even at the final stage (of the hearing of a similar writ petition in a given case), the HC normally could not have granted such a mandatory order'' and ``hence, the impugned order of HC cannot be justified by any judicial standard and required to be quashed and set aside''.

The Bench, however, keeping in view the interests of the students who were already admitted to the medical college which was started (in pursuance to the HC's interim order recorded a statement of the trust that ``all other infrastructural requirements under regulations framed by the MCI will be complied with, and that a 300-bed hospital is likely to be ready within a period of six months''.

The Bench, therefore, gave the following directions:

``The MCI shall inspect within one month whether other infrastructural requirements contemplated by the regulations are complied with by respondent. If any deficiency is found, the Medical Council would intimate the respondent and the respondent would see that the deficiencies are removed''.

``As soon as respondent is in a position to complete the 300 bed hospital, it would intimate the MCI and the Central Government for carrying out inspection as required under the regulations''.

``In the event permission under section 10A of the MCI Act is granted by the Central Government, the students who have been admitted to this college after the passing of the impugned order by the HC shall stand allotted to the first year MBBS course of that college and the first MBBS course will commence therefrom'',

``Students will not be entitled to appear in any examination until they complete the prescribed minimum period of studies after the permission is granted under Section 10A'',

``No further admissions will be allotted to the first batch of MBBS course except on vacancies arising from any student refusing to pursue studies further'' and ``in the event of respondent failing to comply with the MCI requirements, including a 300 bed hospital, and not being accorded the permission under Section 10A by the Central Government, this order (of the Bench) will not create any equities in favour of the trust or those students who have been admitted pursuant to the impugned order of the HC''.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : National
Previous : Names of 7 more bookies surface
Next     : Consensus that never was