The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has quashed the merit list prepared by Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, for the Other Backward Category (OBC) candidates under the UT pool for admission to the MBBS course for the 2026-27 academic session.
The court observed that in the prospectus released by the GMCH, an OBC candidate was required to produce the prescribed OBC certificate from the designated authority within UT. It did not have any other requirement laid down in the clauses. This comes days after the court quashed the merit list for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates under the UT pool on September 16.
It would mean that respondents have altered the original prospectus and introduced a new eligibility condition.,” the court said, adding that some of the candidates, who are otherwise eligible to be considered for admission as per the plain reading of the prospectus, have become ineligible. In its September 16 judgement in the case of SC category candidates, the court had held that the rules of the game, meaning the criteria for selection, cannot be modified after the process of selection has begun. The court also rejected the UT’s argument of October 2018 instructions from the Centre mandating that an OBC person migrating from one state/UT to another, would retain the status in the state/UT of origin and cannot claim corresponding benefits in the migrated state/UT.
“This bench observed that the prospectus constitutes a declared norm by which eligibility, scrutiny, preparation of merit and admission has to be regulated. An educational institution or an admitting authority, which has framed the prospectus, is as much bound by the norms laid down therein as the candidate, who seeks admission thereunder,” it asserted. “In case these instructions are read into the prospectus, it would result in a modification of the prospectus, which is impermissible.
Now, the GMCH has been directed to revise the merit list according to the conditions laid down in the prospectus as expeditiously as possible and also treat those with “migrated OBC certificates” eligible for OBC seats of UT pool. The court, however, said that the judgment will not be an impediment for the authorities from prescribing an admission criteria based on instructions of the Government of India, from the next academic session.
