CITIZEN OF INDIA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) the national law school of India university, bangalore, in its publication "march of the law, 1994", while reviewing legal developments in India in the field of education law, has noticed that 1992-93 will go down in the history of constitutional litigation on education. The debate that started with Dr. Pradeep Jain v. Union of India and others, on the issue of policy on education, specially relating to professional education, dictates several dimensions and Reached Unni Krishnan J.P. and Others V.State of Andhra Pradesh and others , via, Miss Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka and others . The parliament also took immediate notice of the said developments and appropriately responded by enacting Indian medical council (Amendment) Act, 1993 and the dentists (Amendment) Act, 1993. But all in vain. The mischief sought to be remedied could still find their ways to survive with higher vigour openly declaring "we are unconquerable. We survive with ten heads like ravana". The enquires conducted in these proceedings, the documents produced by the central government, the medical council of India and the dental council of India conclusively proves that the managements of the medical and dental colleges in the state, with the support, active or tacit, of the state government and the university authorities have conveniently flouted the judicial and parliamentary mandates by admitting students far in excess of their legally permissible overall intake as also the prescribed management quota. Shockingly, it has not only been so done at the cost of the statutorily defined minimum standards of medical and dental education, rather it has also subjected the students so admitted to their utter dismay exposing their careers to peril particularly keeping in view the mandatory provisions contained in Section 10-b of the above acts. It may be noticed here that if the admission of any student is found to be hit by the said provisions, the medical or dental qualifications acquired by them may remain wholly futile and fruitless having no practical utility thus resulting in complete waste of time, energy and money spent in pursuing the said professional courses. background settings

(2.) this participatory judicial proceeding in the nature of apublic interest litigation was registered on the basis of a public complaint received through post inter alia alleging therein that the medical colleges in the state of Karnataka have been permitted by the state government to admit students far in excess of the admission capacities fixed by the medical council of India (in short, 'council') despite the direction and request of the latter under its letter dated 21-11-1994 addressed to the state government through its secretary, health and family welfare, with copies to the director of medical education and to the principals and deans of the said medical colleges inviting their pointed attention to the provisions of sections 10-a, 10-b and 10-c of the Indian medical council Act, 1956 (in short, 'the Central Act') as inserted by the 1993 amendment with effect from 27-8-1992. It is also alleged that the managements of the colleges have regularly indulged in admitting students even in excess of the intakes fixed by the state government under the guise of "backlog vacancies" a concept unsupportable with reference to any statutory provision and far in excess of 15% management quota fixed by the Supreme Court. The' reason implicitly suggested for commission of these illegalities cannot be outrightly rejected as frivolous or mala fide, since of late it has surfaced as a reality in various spheres. The complainant says "sir, you may know the fee for each seat is 75,000 us dollars". Even the Supreme Court has taken judicial notice of this fact in its Order dated 10-5-1995 in the case of T.M.A.PaL Foundation v. State of Karnataka, by observing "it is common knowledge that each seat under this quota is sold for huge sums not all accounted for and not all in Indian currency".

(3.) it has also been brought on record a publication made by the common entrance test cell of the Karnataka government titled "college information directory common entrance test 1996" which has been published for information of the candidates who are aspiring to take admission in the medical, dental and engineering colleges situated in this state during the academic year 1996-97 representing the admission capacity of the colleges as fixed by the state government which is far in excess of what has been fixed by council. Request has been made to look into the matter and take necessary action.