MBBS: HC declines to award 5 grace marks

MBBS: HC declines to award 5 grace marks 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 22.09.2024 

Bengaluru : The HC recently dismissed a batch of petitions filed by several medical students, seeking the award of 5 grace marks in the course attempted in (MBBS) RS4 Examinations of Jan 2024. Justice S Sunil Dutt Yadav also rejected their prayer, seeking the quashing of the “Ordinance/Notification governing Central Assessment Programme (CAP) for Theory Paper Assessment of all Undergraduate Health Science Courses of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences” dated Sept 5, 2022. 

The petitioners claimed that the Undergraduate Medical Education Board guidelines issued on Aug 1, 2023, specifically do away with the award of grace marks, the benefit granted under the 2019 Regulations. They also sought a direction to conduct a fresh evaluation of the failed subjects of MBBS (RS4) Examinations of Nov 2023. However, after perusing the regulations and the guidelines, Justice Yadav noted that the standards of examination as well as such standards in the courses are a dynamic system that keeps changing and that the effort for elevating the standard of education is a continuous process and can be linked to the objective of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019. 

“It is but a natural process of any education system to constantly re-invent the course and examination patterns in order to produce high-quality professionals. If that were to be so, the promulgation of guidelines from time to time as regards examination must be looked at in the context of changes in the course and examination,” the judge said. “The provision of grace marks under the 2019 Regulations framed under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, would have to give way to new standards of examination and evaluation as provided under the Guidelines framed in 2023 in exercise of power under Section 24 (1) (e) of the NMC Act, 2019 by the UGMEB. 

In light of the above discussion, the contention of the  petitioners that the benefit of grace marks, as was prevalent under the 2019 Guidelines has remained and cannot be accepted,” the judge further observed, while dismissing the petitions.