- (1.) Admitted as foreign national in the NRI quota to the 5 year MBBS course at the Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur (hereafter 'the College') in the academic year 2016-17 and having spent a year and two months studying in the said course, vide impugned letter dated 19th September, 2017, the petitioner on the recommendation of MCI to the College on 13 th September, 2017, has been discharged and since then not allowed to continue in 5 year MBBS course. In the circumstances, the letters dated 13th September, 2017 by MCI to the Principal of College as also the consequent discharge of petitioner by the Principal of College on 19th September 2017 are under challenge in this petition.
(2.) Mr. Ajat Shatru Mina appearing for the petitioner submitted that prior to admission to MBBS in the Academic Year 2016-17 foreign nationals were not allowed to write the NEET 2016 examination. It was submitted that hence the petitioner a foreign national sought admission into the 5 year MBBS course in the quota of NRIs in the Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Hospital on the strength of her marks in the Secondary and Sr. Secondary School examination conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education while she was a student of the Vidya Devi Jindal School, Hisar, Haryana. She was admitted in the said MBBS course on the recommendation of the State Government and now under the impugned letters stands discharged. This has caused her injustice and unless rectified will result in irreparable loss. Mr. Ajat Shatru Mina submits that petitioner's case is identical to that of Ms. Mashal, citizen of Pakistan, who was admitted to MBBS in SMS Medical College, Jaipur and Ms. Riecha Joshi, citizen of Nepal, who was admitted to MBBS in Medical College, Kota in Academic Year 2016-17 without appearing in NEET, 2016. Their admissions have been yet regularized under the letter dated 26/27th October, 2017 under the hand of the Secretary, Medical Education. This entails an inevitable inference that foreign students are not mandatorily required even to write the NEET examination what of securing the minimum prescribed percentage under the Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 1997 as amended in 2010 (hereafter 'Graduate Regulations') for admission into Medical College / MBBS course in the Academic Year 2016-17. Mr. Ajat Shatru Mina further submitted that Graduate Regulations cannot in the circumstances be taken to exclude altogether admission of foreign students to the MBBS course in Academic Year 2016-17 without participation in NEET examination, 2016. Mr. Ajat Shatru Mina in the alternative submitted that even in equity, the petitioner has a case for this court to interfere and quash the impugned communications as she has expanded 14 months in pursuing the MBBS course subsequent to her admission in August, 2016 and expanded both time and money. Further, the seat in issue, Mr. Ajat Shatru Mina, submitted would stand lapsed and would be of no avail to any other at this stage even if the petitioner is discontinued as she has been under the impugned letter dated 19 th September, 2017 consequent to MCI's letter dated 13th September, 2017.
(3.) Per Contra, Mr. Angad Mirdha, appearing for MCI submitted that admissions to graduate medical courses are to be determined strictly in terms of the Graduate Regulations. He has drawn the attention of this Court to Regulation 5.5(V) of the aforesaid regulations to submit that it is mandatory that all admissions to MBBS course within the respective categories be based without any variation solely on marks obtained in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test. It has been submitted that the words "respective categories" in the said regulation would necessarily include the NRI category / foreign students seeking to avail a vacancy in the said quota. Mr. Angad Mirdha submitted that in this view of the matter on the face of the governing regulations, the petitioner was not eligible to be admitted into MBBS course without having passed NEET, 2016 and even if she was admitted on the basis of the State Government's recommendations, no right to regularization is made out. It was submitted that in-fact under the Graduate Regulations, the State Government has no power to make any recommendation for regularization of an admission wrong made to the MBBS course without passing a NEET. Mr. Angad Mirdha further submitted that even the Central Government under the Graduate Regulations does not have the power to facilitate admissions or their regularization contrary to the said Regulations which effectively prohibit admissions without passing the NEET examination. Mr. Angad Mirdha referred to the judgment of the Apex Court in Rishabh Choudhary Versus Union of India & Ors. {2017 (3) Supreme Court Cases 652}, where it was held that any admission to MBBS 2016-17 without passing NEET 2016 even in respect of the seats in the NRI quota not be regularized or continued. Mr. Angad Mirdha submitted that the law laid down in respect of NRI students would ipso facto apply to foreign students seeking admission in the NRI quota. Mr. Angad Mirdha also submitted that even if foreign students were not allowed to write NEET Examination, 2016, as contended by counsel for the petitioner, it is of no avail as such a situation cannot entail the circumvention of the mandatory regulation 5.5 (V) of the Graduate Regulations. It was submitted that in the event the petitioner sought to write the NEET Examination, 2016 and was not yet permitted, it was for her to have then approached this Court and sought an appropriate direction. She however failed to do so at her own peril and cannot now make capital thereof. Mr. Angad Mirdha then relied upon an order of the Apex Court passed in the case of Vigyan Bharati Trust Versus Union of India & Ors. in IA No 5/2016 in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 490/2014 on 11.5.2016 to submit that the Apex Court seized of the issue with regard to filling up of 15% seats under the NRI quota proceeded to clarify that only such NRI students who had passed the NEET examination would be eligible for admission to MBBS in the NRI quota in the academic year 2016-17. Mr. Angad Mirdha submitted that the petitioner seeks directions contrary to Graduate Regulations-- particularly Regulation 5.5(V) as also the judgments of the Apex Court and hence being without any legal foundation be dismissed.;