SHIKHA AGGARWAL Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner seeks quashing of the counseling procedure adopted by the respondent no.2 in DNB CET in terms of the guidelines laid down by the respondent No.2- Board. The petitioner also seeks directions to direct the respondent No.2 to allow the petitioner to participate in the second round of counseling which is now scheduled from 25.8.2011 to 29.8.2011.

(2.) COUNSEL appearing for the petitioner submits that the counseling procedure laid down by the respondent No.2 in the prospectus is not at parity with the procedure laid down for admission in PG medical courses in AIIMS and the counseling process laid down by All India Entrance Examination for admission to PG Medical and Dental courses. COUNSEL also submits that the petitioner had duly qualified the DNB-CET and, therefore, was eligible to participate in the counseling process to seek admission in the DNB programme in the stream and college/institute/hospital of her choice. COUNSEL further submits that the petitioner in fact had participated in the first round of counseling and as per her rank in the merit list the petitioner was allotted a seat in DNB (Psychiatry) in Deva Medical College, Varanasi and in fact the petitioner had also joined the said institute for the said course after her admission. COUNSEL further submits that the petitioner had no option but to join the said course as in the event of not joining the said course, the petitioner would have lost her right to get admission in the said DNB programme. COUNSEL thus submits that the counseling process laid down by the respondent No.2 deprives a meritorious candidate with a higher rank of an opportunity to participate in the second round of counseling to opt for a course and institute/hospital as per her/his choice as the drop outs of the first round of counseling certainly will be included in the second round of counseling and then chance will be available to the less meritorious candidates to opt for seats and institutes of their choice in preference to the meritorious candidates. COUNSEL thus states that there should be no compromise with the merit as in the academics merit can be the only criteria for selection and allocation of seats for these courses and the institutes/hospitals.

(3.) INDISPUTABLY, after qualifying the DNB CET, the petitioner had participated in the first round of counseling and was granted admission in DNB (Psychiatry) in Deva Medical College, Varanasi according to her rank in the merit list. The petitioner after taking admission in the said course , now at this stage seeks to challenge the counseling procedure to get a chance to participate in the second round of counseling on the ground that the procedure of counseling laid down by the respondent No.2-Board is not fair and is not at parity with the procedure laid down for admission in PG medical courses in AIIMS and the counseling process laid down by All India Entrance Examination for admission to PG medical and dental courses.