Not from Maharashtra? You can still seek admission to PG dental, medical courses in state

The Bombay high court was hearing a petition filed by nine such students, who completed their MBBS from Maharashtra under the 15% all-India quota

Students domiciled outside Maharashtra can now seek admission to post-graduate medical and dental courses in the state, irrespective of their domicile status. The Bombay high court on Thursday struck down the new eligibility rule introduced by the Director Medical Education and Research (DMER) prohibiting such students from getting admission to post-graduate medical and dental courses in the state.

The Bombay high court on Thursday struck down the new eligibility rule introduced by the Director Medical Education and Research (DMER) prohibiting such students from getting admission to post-graduate medical and dental courses in the state.(HT FILE)

The court was hearing a petition filed by nine such students, who completed their MBBS from Maharashtra under the 15% all-India quota and have either completed or are almost done with their one-year compulsory internship in the state. As they wanted to pursue post-graduate medical courses, they appeared for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) held in January 2018 and secured good marks.

Their petition, filed through advocate Pooja Thorat, states that until last year, the only eligibility condition necessary to seek admission to a PG medical or dental course in Maharashtra was to complete an MBBS or BDS course from the state.

Their counsel, advocate VM Thorat, said the requirement of being domicile of Maharashtra was introduced by the DMER by its notice of November 15, 2017.

He said these students were not being considered for admission to PG medical courses in their own states for having completed their MBBS from Maharashtra. Thorat then cited an SC judgement holding that there cannot be any reservation in admission to PG medical or dental courses on the basis of domicile.

The division bench of justice Bhushan Gavai and justice BP Colabawalla accepted his contentions and struck down the requirement of domicile, paving the way for non-Maharashtra students to pursue post-graduate medical or dental courses in the state.