State govt has no power to decide on citizenship, MCI tells high court

DH News Service, Bengaluru, Jul 7 2017, 1:26 IST

The Medical Council of India (MCI) on Thursday informed the High Court of Karnataka that the state government does not have the powers to decide on the citizenship-related issues with regard to including Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) students under the NRI quota for medical admissions.

The state government, in the previous hearing, had said that OCIs have already been included under the definition of Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and NRIs.

Advocate N Khetty, representing MCI, submitted to the court that there is a 2009 notification by the Union government which allows even a foreign national to fly to India and write the medical entrance exam and get a medical seat. But the NRI quota, which has been created through a Supreme Court direction, does not come under the statute. Hence, OCIs cannot be included under the NRI quota. These submissions were made with regard to a batch of petitions filed by OCI students who have challenged Rule 5 of the Karnataka Selection of Candidates for Admission to Government Seats in Professional Educational Institutions Rules, 2006.

The rule restrains OCIs from applying for government seats. It states: ‘No candidate is eligible for admission to government seats unless he is a citizen of India’.