Writ Petition No. 3972 of 2013

26th July, 2013

Petitioner Counsel: Shri A.G. Gharote
Respondent Counsel: Shri A.S. Fulzele

JUDGMENT

B.P. DHARMADHIKARI J. :- Matter was considered by this Court on 24th July 2013 and in view of grievance that the petitioners were being forced to surrender their seats as a condition to participate in personal counseling and that list of all available vacancies was not displayed, this Court while issuing notice permitted respondents to proceed further with the admission rounds but subjected it to further orders of this Court. Learned Assistant Government Pleader then had waived notice.

2. Today, looking to the nature of controversy, we have heard matter finally with the consent of parties by issuing Rule & making it returnable forthwith. Learned Assistant Government Pleader Shri Fulzele, has assisted us in the light of instructions received by him.

3. Shri Gharote, learned counsel submits that the perusal of Notification dated 19th July 2013 about Personal Counseling process along with Rule 13.2, 13.4.1 and 13.5 as also 13.4.2 show that unless and until a candidate who wants to resign his seat from All India Quota i. e. AIQ and wishes to participate in personal round, is given adequate intimation of the vacancy position, the decision to surrender itself cannot be taken. He contends that the petitioners have been admitted in a College in AIQ. They desire to avail better education, surrender their seats and also intend to participate in personal counseling round. However, the prospects of betterment after such participation must be known to them before hand, otherwise after surrendering seat they may, instead of betterment of prospects, land in a College with less prestige. He submits that entire scheme must be looked into to comprehend its working. The authorities, therefore, have to first publish the combined display of vacancies as given in revised Notification dated 25th July 2013 and as that vacancy position thus becomes available today in the evening, petitioners must be given opportunity to resign after studying it. Hence after 26th July 2013 only, the petitioners can take a proper and right decision to better their prospects.

4. Learned AGP has invited our attention to Notification dated 19th July 2013 at Annexure 5 with Writ Petition. According to him the candidates like petitioners were to surrender the seats by 5 p.m. on that date so as to be eligible for Personal Counseling Round. He invites attention to provisions of Rule 13.4.2 (d) of the NEET-PGM-2013 Rules for said purpose. He contends that if petitioners interpretation of Rule 13.2 is accepted, the entire Scheme itself cannot be operated and will be defeated. He also points out revised Notification issued on 25th July 2013 to show the personal counseling which was to commence on 28th July 2013 is now postponed to 29th July 2013. He, therefore, prays for dismissal of petition.

5. Shri Gharote, learned counsel for the petitioners, by inviting attention to revised Notification, submits that the surrender of seats and therefore resulting vacancies is going to be a phenomena at each stage of admission, and hence,until the candidates like petitioners are given concrete information, they cannot be forced to surrender their seats.

6. We have taken revised Notification dated 25th July 2013 on record as Ex. 'X'. The business scheduled on 24th July 2013 in earlier Notification dated 19th July 2013 and this revised Notification has not been altered. As per the said Notification, candidates who joined a seat in 50% All India Quota in State of Maharashtra and desirous to shift to State Quota i. e. SQ by participating in the personal counseling round, were asked to surrender their seats first so as to qualify for personal counseling round. Notification is itself for personal counseling process. The revised Notification dated 25th July 2013 mentions that business prescribed for date 24th July 2013 is already over.

7. In present petition filed on 24th July 2013 effort is to show that said procedure could not have been completed on 24th July 2013.

8. The provisions of above mentioned NEET-PGM 2013 Rules, particularly Clause 12.2.6 shows that if a candidate to whom a seat has been allotted in first round wants a betterment of choice, he has to first accept the allotment and join the allotted college, & if he fails to join, he is thrown out of entire admission process. Rule 13.4 is about eligibility for personal counseling round. As per clause 'c' thereof, all candidates to whom seat came to be allotted in All India Admission process in a college situated in Maharashtra and who have voluntarily surrendered that seat by giving an application before the prescribed date, can participate and are eligible for personal counseling round. This Clause 'c' stipulates that such surrendered seat is added to State Quota and therefore, the seat needs to be surrendered before prescribed date and that date was 24th July 2013 in the present matter. As per Clause 'd' of Rule 13.4, all candidates to whom seat is allotted through NEET-PGM 2013 in earlier round and who joined the college but resign thereafter also qualify for personal counseling round. As per Rule 13.4.2, the candidate who has not surrendered the seat to State quota by giving an application before the prescribed date is declared "not eligible" for personal counseling round. Rule 13.5 then stipulates that final round of admission is to be conducted by personal counseling. The seats found as available for admission are to be displayed on the web site before the commencement of Personal Counseling round. The description of those seats is given in Clause (a) to (d) of this Rule:

"(a) All the seats that have remained vacant, if any, at the end of previous admission round(s) on account of non allotment.

(b) All the seats that were allotted in the previous found(s) but were rendered vacant on account of the candidate to whom such seats were allotted either did not join or resigned or joined but did not fill in Status Retention Forms.

(c) All such seats that may revert back to the State Government quota from All India Quota for any reason whatsoever;

(d) All such seats that may become additionally available on any account whatsoever, including but not limited to seats if any additionally recognized by Medical Council of India/MUHS, Nashik or made additionally available on account of any Order that maybe passed by the Courts etc."

Those seats which have remained unoccupied at the end of previous admission round/rounds on account of non allotment are required to be displayed only before the commencement of personal counseling round. Similarly, the seats becoming vacant or remaining vacant due to not reporting or resigning etc. are also to be displayed before commencement of this round. Seats reverting back to State Quota from All India Quota and seats becoming additionally available on any account whatsoever are also to be displayed beforehand. There is no other Rule which contemplates such publication of vacancies at any time prior to commencement of personal counseling round. Harmony achieved needs to be maintained & this Court can not in the absence of appropriate prayers & challenge, read any such stage into the admission process.

9. In this background when Rule 13.2 is looked into, the said Rule clearly shows that it is in furtherance of this Scheme, we reproduced said Rule:

"13.2: Before personal counseling round all available vacant seats (due to non-allotment/ non-joining/ resigning etc.) will be notified on the website. All the Candidates should carefully go through the vacant seats as notified on website and decide as to whether retain the allotted seat to him/her or to go for Final Personal Counseling round. All the candidates who have joined in the previous round(s), will be given a stipulated period to fill status retention form."

The second sentence in this Rule which warrants candidates to carefully go through the vacant seats position and thereafter decide whether to retain the allotted seat to him or to go for "Final Personal Counseling" round is being pressed into service on behalf of petitioners to urge that unless and until final position in this respect becomes clear, said decision is not expected. Effort of learned counsel on behalf of petitioners was also to show that even practically, no student who has occupied a particular seat and joined a college will like to resign unless and until he sees a definite possibility of betterment of his prospects. We find the contention misconceived. As per Rule 13.7, the effort envisaged is not to create any vacancies consequent to such allotment & personal counseling is held strictly in order of State Merit List. Entire mechanism in the Rules or then spirit behind it shows that admission process shifts focus from All India Quota & State Quota at one stage & aims at filling in remaining vacancies as State Merit seats. Seats surrendered in All India Quota due to resignation or then remaining unoccupied due to any reason, all then form part of State Quota.

10. The said second sentence only considers vacancies prevailing/available at the time when the decision whether to resign or surrender is being taken by the student. In present case, that stage arrived on 24th July 2013 for the petitioners. Looking to vacancies then available, it was for petitioners to decide whether to go for personal counseling or then to stick to their existing admission. The seats occupied by students like petitioners who desire to participate in personal round and, therefore resign, are added back to State Quota and are displayed as "vacancies" at next stage of admission, as per the admission schedule i. e. revised Notification at Ex.'X'. If the contention of petitioners is accepted, all students in AIQ will like to know about each and every vacancy becoming available and thereafter only decide, whether to exercise the option or not. In this situation, vacancies created may be at the end of & contingent upon the said decision making process. Every student may desire to wait accordingly & want another student to resign first. Thus petitioners will like to take decision after all vacancies are displayed & perhaps the opportunity of surrendering the seat and of betterment by participating in personal round of counseling will itself be rendered nugatory. Student admitted in AIQ has to consider the material i. e. merit & vacancy position in SQ qua his own merit & standing. His resignation from a College & surrender of seat occupied by him in AIQ only makes one more seat available in SQ. It does not ensure him a preference in an admission in personal round if, otherwise, his standing in Merit List is down below & does not entitle him to it. Such candidate therefore has to undertake an exercise & estimate his prospects in SQ qua his existing admission. Seats are being taken & occupied in AIQ or SQ in descending order i. e. more meritorious students getting best seats. Hence, after they resign & those seats are born on SQ in final round, most meritorious students in State Merit List must get first option, even against said seats in descending order of merit. This can not be achieved, if the students like petitioners are permeated to participate in counseling rounds without making their AIQ seat available for other Students. Rule 13.7 itself declares that the object of the process is to fill in all vacancies as far as possible without creating a new or fresh vacant seat as a result of allotment in personal counseling round. If the petitioners are allowed to surrender their AIQ seat after the said round has begun or after they secure a seat of their choice, those more meritorious State Merit Students who had by then already finalized their admissions, loose opportunity to aspire for the said seats. This defeats merit & thus renders the NEET-PMG 2013 Rules unworkable.

11. Moreover, the Petitioners were aware of the requirement of surrendering their seats by 24th July 2013 when Notification dated 19th July 2013 was published. They have chosen to approach this Court at the fag end of admission programme.

12. The NEET-PGM Rules aim at providing wide field to choose from to the meritorious students which then gradually grows narrower towards the bottom of any merit list. All AIQ seats are available to student at Sr. no. 1 in AIQ merit list. Similarly entire field i. e. all vacancies in State Quota are made available to opt for to the student at top of State Merit List. This intention of framers is neither arbitrary nor perverse. It also holds good for personal counseling round. Effort of the petitioners which tends to destroy an otherwise coherent scheme can not be countenanced. The effort of draftsman and object of NEET-PGM Rules appears to be to provide all students an equal opportunity of betterment and, therefore, permitting the resignation/surrender of seats as a part of ongoing admission process but before final round. Insofar as All India Quota is concerned that opportunity was given and was open till 24th July 2013. Had petitioners exercised their option on 24th July 2013, their vacancies then could have been shown on 25th July 2013 or 26th July 2013, and the other participants, depending upon their merit position, could have opted for it. If the contention of petitioners is accepted, it creats a discord & meritorious candidates lose that opportunity. Hence we do not find any substance in the contentions being raised.

13. Petition is misconceived and rejected. No costs. Steno copy be supplied to the counsel for the parties.

Petition dismissed.