No reservation in super-specialty medical courses for in-service doctors in Tamil Nadu, Kerala for 2020-21: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court, on Friday, ordered that the 50% reservation for in-service doctors in super-specialty medical courses shall not be implemented for the current academic year of 2020-21. .The interim order was passed by a Bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao, Hemant Gupta and Ajay Rastogi in a batch of petitions challenging the orders passed by the Kerala and Madras High Courts on the issue..States can make provisions for reservation for in-service medical officers in PG courses, MCI has no power: Supreme Court.In its order, the Court noted that the process for admission to super-specialty medical courses started on August 3, when it "was made clear to all the competing candidates that there shall be no reservation" to these courses. ."Government order issued by the State of Tamil Nadu on 07.11.2020 reserving 50 per cent seats for in-service doctors would be detrimental to the interests of the meritorious Doctors as 50 per cent of the available seats in the State of Tamil Nadu in Super Specialty Medical Courses will not be available to them," the order said. .The Court further noted that there will be reduction of 50% of seats for super-specialty courses in Tamil Nadu if the government order (GO) is carried out, which would be detrimental to meritorious candidates.."Admittedly no reservation for in-service Doctors was implemented since 2016," the court observed..The Bench thus directed,."We direct that the counselling for admission to Super Specialty Medical Courses for the academic year 2020-2021 shall proceed on a date to be fixed by the competent authority without providing for reservations to in-service doctors for the academic year 2020-2021. We reiterate that the above direction would be operative only for the current academic year i.e. 2020-2021.".The Court was hearing a challenge to an October 7 judgment of the Kerala High Court and a November 9 decision of the Madras High Court, allowing 40% and 50% in-service quota in PG-Super Speciality medical courses also..The Tamil Nadu government had passed a GO to this effect on November 7. This reservation was scheduled to be implemented for academic years 2021-22 (for postgraduate courses) and 2020-21 (for super-specialty courses)..The High Courts noted that since the Supreme Court had, in August 2020, upheld in-service quota in the Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association case, the authorities are bound to implement it. In the said judgment, a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court had held that Medical Council of India (MCI) has no power to make any reservation for in-service candidates in post-graduate medical course in any particular State, and that the power lies with the States..The Central government opposed the implementation of this reservation for the current academic year, and had argued in the apex court that passing a GO after the super-specialty admissions had commenced is like specifying the rules of a game after the game has started..The MCI also opposed the GO, arguing that the prospectus issued for super-specialty course admissions did not have information about the reservation and, hence, it was not fair to the applicants..The Madras High Court had, on November 9, upheld the reservation. The State government had reportedly passed the GO because of the requirement of more super-specialty doctors who can offer high-end surgeries free of cost to people who choose to get treated at government healthcare facilities..Observing that the States have the power to provide quota for in-service candidates in PG-super specialty medical courses, the High Court of Kerala had directed that the 40 % in-service quota under the Kerala Medical Officers Postgraduate and Service Quota Act, 2008 should be given effect during the counselling for PG-super-specialty medical seats..A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly of the Kerala High Court had ordered the State government to prepare the list of candidates eligible for the 40% in-service quota and directed the Director General of Health Services and the National Medical Commission to implement the same..The Supreme Court had heard Senior Advocates Dushyant Dave and Shyam Divan for petitioners, Senior Counsel CS Vaidyanathan for the state of Tamil Nadu , Senior Advocate P Wilson for the in-service doctors who had filed writ petitions in Madras High Court, and also considered the submissions of the Central government and the National Medical Commission..On August 31, Constitution Bench of Justices Arun Mishra, Indira Banerjee, Vineet Saran, MR Shah and Aniruddha Bose had held that the MCI has no power to make any provision for reservation for in-service medical officers in respect of post-graduate degree courses in medical colleges (Tamil Nadu Medical Officers’ Association & Ors v. Union of India & Ors).The Court had also held that the States were within their authority to provide for a separate source of entry in this respect..States can make provisions for reservation for in-service medical officers in PG courses, MCI has no power: Supreme Court."The Medical Council of India which has been constituted under the provisions of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 is the creature of the statute in exercise of powers under Entry 66 List I and has no power to make any provision for reservation, more particularly, for in-service candidates by the concerned States, in exercise of powers under Entry 25 List III", the Supreme Court had held. .The Court, in that ruling, had also clarified that the ruling will only have prospective effect, clarifying that "any admissions given earlier taking a contrary view shall not be affected by this judgment.".[Read order]