PUNE: The Bombay high court has directed the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) to accept the examination forms of as many as 45 postgraduate Masters in Dental Surgery (MDS) students, who were admitted against minority quota seats by the M A Rangoonwala Dental College here in 2014-15 on the basis of an institutional level common entrance test (CET) held on February 9, 2014.
In an ad-interim relief granted on April 1, the bench of Justices Anoop Mohta and K R Shriram directed the MUHS to approve the title and synopsis and accept the thesis of the 45 admitted students.
It also directed the university to accept their examination forms, issue them hall tickets, allow them to appear for exams, declare their results and issue them mark lists to enable them to pursue further studies.
On February 10, the Pravesh Niyantran Samiti (PNS) had expressed its inability to approve admissions of these students and on March 23, the MUHS had refused to accept their exam forms. Incidentally, the admissions were effected on the basis of the PG-CET that was allowed by the high court through an interim order passed on February 4, 2014.
Since 2013-14, the Rangoonwala College run by the Maharashtra Cosmopolitan Education Society, a Muslim minority institution headed by educationist P A Inamdar, is engaged in a legal dispute with the PNS on whether there is any provision for a separate entrance test for minority institutions in view of the Supreme Court judgment in 2003 in the Islamic Academy of Education vs State of Karnataka.
The apex court, in that case, had dealt with the rights of minority institutions.
In November 2013, the PNS had refused permission to the college to conduct the PG-CET on the grounds that such a separate CET was against the SC orders and that the 231 other minority institutions in the state would make similar demands. The college then moved the high court against the PNS order by pointing out that it was conducting the CET with the Samiti's clearance since 2007. This petition is pending final disposal.
After the PNS rejected its application for approval of the 2014-15 MDS admissions, Inamdar moved a civil application as part of the petition pending before the court. The lawyers appearing for PNS argued on April 1 that the Samiti was not concerned with checking, controlling or approving admission of such students.
The bench, however, observed that the college had conducted the PG-CET and admissions based on the court's order. "There is no reason at this stage to hamper the students' career for the controversy so raised and specifically when considering that submissions raised by the PNS based upon the SC judgment in Islamic Academy and the earlier orders passed by this court as well as SC, this court has only granted limited prayers."
The bench pointed out that considering the arguments of the PNS vis-a-vis SC orders, it had granted only limited prayers to the extent of conduct of CET and admissions. The larger issues are still kept open. "The aspect of grant of orders passed by this court was totally overlooked. There is nothing on record to show that the PNS has no authority to admit such students. The petitioners as well as students cannot be at the eleventh hour confronted with such a situation where all are helpless in spite of the fact that this court has granted permission to petitioners to conduct the course based upon the earlier orders passed by this court."
In an ad-interim relief granted on April 1, the bench of Justices Anoop Mohta and K R Shriram directed the MUHS to approve the title and synopsis and accept the thesis of the 45 admitted students.
It also directed the university to accept their examination forms, issue them hall tickets, allow them to appear for exams, declare their results and issue them mark lists to enable them to pursue further studies.
On February 10, the Pravesh Niyantran Samiti (PNS) had expressed its inability to approve admissions of these students and on March 23, the MUHS had refused to accept their exam forms. Incidentally, the admissions were effected on the basis of the PG-CET that was allowed by the high court through an interim order passed on February 4, 2014.
Since 2013-14, the Rangoonwala College run by the Maharashtra Cosmopolitan Education Society, a Muslim minority institution headed by educationist P A Inamdar, is engaged in a legal dispute with the PNS on whether there is any provision for a separate entrance test for minority institutions in view of the Supreme Court judgment in 2003 in the Islamic Academy of Education vs State of Karnataka.
The apex court, in that case, had dealt with the rights of minority institutions.
In November 2013, the PNS had refused permission to the college to conduct the PG-CET on the grounds that such a separate CET was against the SC orders and that the 231 other minority institutions in the state would make similar demands. The college then moved the high court against the PNS order by pointing out that it was conducting the CET with the Samiti's clearance since 2007. This petition is pending final disposal.
After the PNS rejected its application for approval of the 2014-15 MDS admissions, Inamdar moved a civil application as part of the petition pending before the court. The lawyers appearing for PNS argued on April 1 that the Samiti was not concerned with checking, controlling or approving admission of such students.
The bench, however, observed that the college had conducted the PG-CET and admissions based on the court's order. "There is no reason at this stage to hamper the students' career for the controversy so raised and specifically when considering that submissions raised by the PNS based upon the SC judgment in Islamic Academy and the earlier orders passed by this court as well as SC, this court has only granted limited prayers."
The bench pointed out that considering the arguments of the PNS vis-a-vis SC orders, it had granted only limited prayers to the extent of conduct of CET and admissions. The larger issues are still kept open. "The aspect of grant of orders passed by this court was totally overlooked. There is nothing on record to show that the PNS has no authority to admit such students. The petitioners as well as students cannot be at the eleventh hour confronted with such a situation where all are helpless in spite of the fact that this court has granted permission to petitioners to conduct the course based upon the earlier orders passed by this court."
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