Date:24/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/24/stories/2008072456210400.htm

Kerala - Kochi

Directive to complete admissions high court round-up

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday directed the State government and the Director of Medical Education to complete the admission process for the post-graduate super-specialty courses in medicine in various medical colleges as per the prospectus without any relaxation of the eligibility criteria for service candidates.

Justice S. Siri Jagan passed the directive on a few writ petitions filed by certain candidates seeking admission to the courses in the open merit quota.

According to them, no government service candidates had obtained the minimum marks of 50 per cent in the entrance examination.

The petitioner said that the government was taking steps to amend the eligibility conditions to enable the service candidates to get admission.

The government pleader submitted that counselling for the course would start day after tomorrow and he had not received any instruction to the effect that the government intended to alter the minimum eligibility criteria for the service candidates.

Ordinance challenged

A Bench comprising Justice P.R. Raman and Justice T. R. Ramachandran Nair admitted a writ petition challenging the Malabar Devaswom Board Ordinance.

The petition was filed by the Malabar Devaswom Employees Congress. It alleged that the ordinance was unconstitutional.

The ordinance did not empower the Malabar Devaswom Board to make transfer, promotion and appointments of temple employees.

These powers were still vested with the trustees of the respective temples under the board.

Petition on textbook

Justice K.T. Sankaran on Wednesday referred to a Division Bench a writ petition seeking to restrain the State government from modifying the Class VII social science textbook as per the recommendations of the textbook revision committee headed by K.N. Panikkar.

The petition was filed by O.D. Kuriakose of Erattupetta in Kottayam.

CD submitted

The CBI submitted a compact disc on the narco-analysis test conducted on the suspects in the sister Abhaya case before the High Court.

The court had earlier directed the CBI to produce the CD when a petition filed by Thomas, father of Abhaya, seeking to expedite the investigation came up for hearing.