MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF GREATER BOMBAY UNIVERSITY OF BOMBAY STATE OF MAHARASHTRA DR GAYATRI AGARWAL DR SACHIN D KULKARNI Vs. THUKRAL ANJALI DEOKUMAR:ANJALI DEOKUMAR THUKRAL:THUKRAL ANJALI DEOKUMAR:STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE principal point involved in these appeals relates to the constitutional validity of rule 4(.A) of the Rules framed by the Bombay Municipal Corporation for admission to post-graduate degree and diploma courses in its medical colleges framed on 18/06/1988 and, rule 5 framed under the Government Resolution dated 18/06/1971 for admission to the Government Medical College, both the rules providing for collegewise institutional preference for admission in the M. D. Course. By the impugned judgment, the High Court allowed the writ petitions out of which these appeals arise, and struck down the impugned rule 4(A) in whole and rule 5 (wrongly stated as rule 6 in the High Court judgment), in so far as it applies to the Government Medical College in the city of Bombay, as discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution and. accordingly, invalid.

(2.) THERE are four medical colleges in the city of Bombay and affiliated to the University of Bombay. Of these four medical colleges, three are run and conducted by the Bombay Municipal Corporation, namely, Lokmanya Tilak Memorial Medical College (LTMMC), Seth G. S. Medical College (GSMC) and Topiwalla National Medical College (TNMC). The only college that is being run by the Maharashtra Government in the city of Bombay is Grant Medical College (GMC). It is not necessary to state in details the facts leading to the filing of the writ petitions before the High Court out of which these appeals arise. Suffice it to say that some candidates who were not admitted in the M. D. Course in the respective colleges from which they had passed their MBBS Examination, were not also admitted in the other medical colleges in the city of Bombay, in view of collegewise institutional preference as provided by rule 4(A) in respect of three Municipal Colleges and by rule 5 relating to GMC. the Maharashtra Government College. The High Court as stated already, struck down rule 4(A) and rule 5 in part and allowed the writ petitions. hence these appeals by special leave.

(3.) THE institutional prefrence that has been referred to in the observation of Bhagwati, J. does not at all relate to collegewise institutional preference, with which we are concerned. THE learned Additional Solicitor General has, however, placed strong reliance on the following observation made by Bhagwati, J. in Pradeep Jain's case (AIR 1984 SC 1420) which is extracted below :