In response to the mop-up round of counselling held on March 25, 2022, against general category seats of the state quota, the High Court today ordered Maharishi Markandeshwar University, Solan, and the Principal of Maharishi Markandeshwar Medical College (MMMC), Kumarhatti, Solan, to redraft the merit list of admissions to the MBBS programme at the MMMC.
On a plea submitted by Akiriti Sharma, who took the NEET (UG)—2021–2022 exam to be admitted to the MBBS programme, a division bench made up of Justice Sabina and Justice Satyen Vaidya issued this ruling.
In the NEET, the petitioner earned 456 out of 720 points (UG). The petitioner was granted state quota admission to the BDS programme at Bhojia Dental College in Nalagarh during the first round of counselling. She received HP Dental College, Shimla, as her choice during the second round of counselling. The MMMC organised a mop-up round for admission to the open seats in various categories on March 25, 2022. Additionally, three state quota seats in the MBBS programme were open to applicants from the general category.
In order to fill the state quota seat, the petitioner applied to the MMMC. The MMMC upgraded three students from the management quota in order to admit them against the three general category seats under the state quota rather than admitting the petitioner.
They received lower NEET scores than the petitioner (440, 441 and 442) (UG). To correct the error, the petitioner immediately sent a representation to the MMMC, but to no avail.
Upon granting the petition, the court made the following observation: “It is held to be bad in law being against the conditions of prospectus to admit three students in the state quota general category seats in the MMMC on their upgrade from the management quota by ignoring the merit of other applicants, including the petitioner in the mop-up round.”
The petitioner is asking the MMMC and Atal Medical and Research University, Mandi, to rewrite the merit list for admissions to the MBBS course at the MMMC and to subsequently admit her to the MBBS programme at the MMMC, Kumarhatti, should she be given a spot in the redesigned merit list. “This court will fail in its constitutional duties,” the court said in passing this instruction, “if it finds itself unable to assist a victim reclaim her right simply because the final date for admission has passed.”