NAJMA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners in both the Writ Petitions are students presently doing their final year, 9thsemester of MBBS course. They joined the 5th respondent College (Kerala Medical College, Palakkad) during the academic year 2016-2017, after successful completion of NEET examination.

(2.) The petitioners remitted fee for the first and second year MBBS course as is evident from the receipts produced. Alleging that there was no infrastructure facilities in the 5th respondent College to carry on the course, the petitioners and other students filed W.P. C. No. 24826/2018 in which the students of the 5th respondent College were directed to be re-allotted to nine different medical colleges in the State by Ext. P7 judgment. The petitioners had already lost one academic year (2018-2019) due to the litigation and they were directed to join the 5th semester of the 2nd year MBBS course to the re-allotted college namely, the 6th respondent medical college for the academic year 2019-2020. Petitioners submit that they were allotted to the 6th respondent college and were to continue the 5th semester of the 2nd year MBBS Course and the 6th semester of the 3rd year MBBS course in the year 2019-2020. . After joining the 6th respondent college, petitioners submit that they have paid the fee for the academic year 2020-2021 as well and, after successful completion of the 7th and 8th semester, they were promoted to the 4th year MBBS course for the final 9th semester in the academic year 2020-2021. Thus, it is the case of the petitioners that they have remitted the entire fees for the MBBS course. Alleging that notwithstanding the payment, the petitioners are prevented from attending the classes for the 9th semester, which commenced from 1-09-2021 on the ground that the petitioners have to remit an additional amount of Rs. 11,49,700.00 each and the NRI fees applicable to one student, the petitioners were not included in the posting from 1-09-2021 to 18-1-2022 in the 6th respondent college. In the said circumstances, the above Writ Petition was filed in which an interim order was passed directing the 6th respondent to permit the petitioners to attend the clinical posting classes as scheduled as per Ext. P19 along with the other students re-allotted from the 5th respondent college.

(3.) The 5th respondent college despite service of notice did not appear to contest the Writ Petition. The 6th respondent has filed a counter affidavit in which it was submitted that the petitioners were to undertake the II MBBS (3rd, 4th and 5th semesters), III MBBS-Part 1 (6th and 7th semesters), III MBBS-Part 2 (8th and 9th Semesters), and house surgency as a part of MBBS course in their College. It was also specifically contended that the petitioners were re-allotted to the 6th respondent institution for joining from the 2nd year onwards. It was submitted that the petitioners though had commenced the II MBBS course in the 5th respondent institution, had to be given training for the entirety of the II MBBS course and not just the 5th semester of the II year MBBS course on account of the lack of training given in the 5th respondent college. In other words, to get the petitioners prepared for the screening test and the II MBBS examinations scheduled for February 2020, the 6th respondent institution ensured that instruction was provided to cover the entirety of the II MBBS course between July 2019 and February 2020. The 6th respondent college asserts that they had to do this on the basis of the instructions of the university as well. In short, the 6th respondent college submits that they have only collected and demanded the fees for the study undertaken by the petitioners and imparted in their college and if the petitioners have made payment to the 5th respondent college they will have to initiate steps for recovering the said amounts alleged to have been paid as fees towards the II MBBS class there from the said college and not to refrain from paying the fees to the re-allotted college.