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Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences & Research and Ors. v. Union of India and Anr.

Writ Petition (Civil) · 2017 INSC 831Decided 31 Aug 2017
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 496 of 2017
Chief Justice Dipak Misra · Justice A.M. Khanwilkar · Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud

Background

The petitioner's medical college in Andhra Pradesh had received a conditional letter of permission (LOP) for the 2016-17 academic session from the Central Government, based on the Oversight Committee's approval. After a further Medical Council of India inspection found faculty/resident deficiencies, the Ministry, acting on a negative recommendation, barred the college from admitting students for two years and ordered encashment of its bank guarantee. Following an earlier Supreme Court order (1 August 2017) directing the Ministry to reconsider the matter afresh, a fresh Hearing Committee found the college's infrastructure and academic requirements were in fact in place and the faculty/resident shortfall was marginal, yet the Ministry still confirmed the 2016-17 LOP while barring fresh admissions for 2017-18, directing the college to re-apply for 2018-19.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the Hearing Committee and Central Government showed "complete disregard" to their own finding that the college was substantially compliant on infrastructure and academic requirements, and gave no tangible reason for still barring 2017-18 admissions: an approach the Court said bordered on "abdication of statutory duty" and defied the spirit of its earlier remand order. Since the college had already run its first MBBS batch in 2016-17 and had met the required conditions, the Court quashed the bar on 2017-18 admissions (up to 150 students) in the larger public interest, invoking its Article 142 powers to direct that the college be allowed into the ongoing central counselling process, with the admission cut-off extended to 5 September 2017, while leaving the MCI/Central Government free to inspect the college and act on any genuine future deficiency.

Lesson Learnt

Where a regulatory authority's own findings acknowledge that an institution has substantially met the required standards, denying it a benefit (here, admission permission) without any tangible stated reason is treated as arbitrary and unsustainable, and the Supreme Court will use its Article 142 powers to protect the larger public interest (here, students' admission opportunities) where statutory authorities act unreasonably.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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