Delhi HC adjourns till July 10 hearing on plea to ensure OBC reservation in medical, dental colleges

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing on a plea seeking directions to the Central government to follow the 27 percent reservation of seats for the OBC category in medical and dental colleges for the academic year 2020.

A bench of Justice Jayant Nath posted the matter for further hearing on July 10 after the counsel for the Ministry of Health apprised the court that a case related to this is pending in the Supreme Court, which is likely to be heard on July 8.

According to the petition, in the past two academic years -- 2017-18 and 2018-19 -- around 5,530 seats that would have gone to students of the OBC category, if the reservation procedure was followed, were allotted to students of the general category.

The plea alleged that after the NEET results, that were published for the year 2020, it was learned through various news reports that the 27 percent of the reservation to the OBCs was not followed in the admissions to medical and dental college seats surrendered by the state government to the all India quota of the Union government.

It said that the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare gave reservations to SC, ST, and economically weaker section category students alone and failed to extended such benefits to the students belonging to the OBC category in the abovesaid courses in a clear violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

In every academic year, 15 percent of UG (MBBS and BDS) seats and 50 percent of PG (MD, MS MDS, etc) seats from the medical colleges of state government will be given to the Union Government under All India Quota and the Union government will fill these seats according to its own procedure, the plea said.

The petition, filed by the National Union of Backward Classes secretary S Geetha through advocate A Rajarajan, alleged that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare through its departments like Director-General of Health and family welfare, Medical Counselling Committee, have discriminated against the OBC students.

It said that the petitioner preferred a representation dated May 17, 2020, before the respondent praying to ensure 27 percent reservations to the students of OBC category in the medical courses but did not receive any proper reply.

( With inputs from ANI )