The Delhi High Court has set aside a regulation that imposed a complete ban on inter-college migration of undergraduate medical students, holding that such an absolute restriction is arbitrary and unconstitutional. The Court ruled that the impugned provision violates Article 14 of the Constitution as it fails to account for exceptional and compassionate circumstances.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia was hearing a petition filed by a visually impaired medical student who sought transfer from a government medical college in Rajasthan to a college in Delhi due to serious health concerns. The student argued that climatic conditions and lack of adequate medical facilities at his existing institution were adversely affecting his health.
The migration request was rejected by the National Medical Commission (NMC) on the basis of Regulation 18 of the Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2023, which imposes a blanket prohibition on migration between medical colleges. The NMC justified the ban by stating that it was necessary to preserve academic standards and the integrity of the merit-based admission process.
Rejecting this justification, the High Court observed that earlier regulations permitted migration in limited and exceptional cases, and no convincing rationale was provided for removing this flexibility altogether. The Bench emphasized that a complete prohibition, without room for genuine hardship cases, is unreasonable and fails the test of equality.
The Court also underscored the obligations of the NMC under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, noting that regulatory authorities must ensure non-discrimination and reasonable accommodation for students with disabilities. Denying migration even in deserving cases, the Court held, defeats these statutory protections.
Accordingly, the High Court struck down the regulation banning inter-college migration, quashed the NMC’s rejection of the petitioner’s request, and directed the Commission to reconsider the application within a stipulated time frame. The Court further instructed the NMC to frame a balanced policy that allows migration in appropriate and exceptional circumstances.
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