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Medical Council of India v. Al Millat Foundation Trust and Others

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal No. 6812 of 2015)Decided 2 Sept 2015
Civil Appeal No. 6812 of 2015
Justice Anil R. Dave · Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel

Background

The Medical Council of India (MCI) had rejected the respondent-Trust's application for permission (by order dated 11.7.2014) on the ground that the application, received on 13 June 2014, was submitted after the statutory time schedule laid down by the Supreme Court in Priya Gupta v. State of Chhattisgarh and Mridul Dhar v. Union of India. The Trust challenged this rejection before the Allahabad High Court (Lucknow Bench), which quashed the MCI's order, prompting the MCI's appeal to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court examined the MCI Establishment of Medical College Regulations, 1999 and the binding precedents on strict adherence to the admission time schedule, and held that the High Court had erred in quashing what was, in the Court's view, a "just and legal" order of rejection passed by the MCI consistent with its own policy and regulations. Finding no fault in the MCI's reasoning that the application had been filed beyond the prescribed schedule, the Court allowed the appeal and set aside the High Court's order along with the directions given therein, with no order as to costs.

Lesson Learnt

The statutory time schedule for medical college admission/approval processes is strictly enforced by courts, and a regulatory body's rejection of an application for being filed after the prescribed deadline will ordinarily be upheld even if a High Court takes a more lenient view.

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

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