SC allows Super Speciality Counselling on MCI oversight Committee Recommendations

An earlier decision by the Supreme Court, refusing to grant counselling extension for medical super-speciality seats has now been revised in a separate bench order, wherein, the holding of mop-up counselling within the next 10 days has been directed.

The directive to this effect to the Director General of Health Services (DGHS)  came from the bench of Justices UU Lalit and AK Goel, who ordered the filling up of 553 vacant SS seats, within the next week or ten days, through the mop-up admission counselling process.

The SChas  directed that there will be a mop-up round of counselling and will be conducted by the DGHS by October 24, as per a recent TOI report.

The Issue

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that more than 500 seats had remained vacant even after an extension was given by the Ministry (after court permission) for counselling. There were two main reasons cited for the same

1. Many Candidates who showed up for the centralised counselling did not join


2. Many states didn't want to surrender all their seats. By the time the respective states and the medical colleges agreed to surrender, the precious counselling time had passed.

However, when the ministry asked the court for another round of mop-up round of counselling, it was met with opposition from the Medical Council of India

HT reports the stand of the apex medical council before the Supreme court, which while opposing the extension of the counselling dates, had said in the SC that not only will the extension perpetuate indiscipline among colleges and candidates, it can also give undue benefit to ineligible candidates who can take the undue advantage.

"What's the assurance that what happened in earlier counselling will not happen next time? We are not in favour of the extension," a source in the MCI told HT.

The September 22 order of the bench, led by Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra held its grounds against the apprehensions expressed about vacant seats in SS courses, and requests for a further extension from the assigned September 14 date. The court stated

"We are of the convinced opinion that an extension at this juncture would not be appropriate. A sense of concern is one thing, but sustenance of discipline and order is another aspect. Weighing both the concepts in a balanced manner, we unhesitatingly come to the conclusion that the prayers made in the interlocutory applications do not deserve any acceptance and, accordingly, they stand rejected."

Revised Oversight Committee Stand

In a recent development,  Health Ministry again filed an appeal with the Apex court, demanding a new round of counselling after the newly constituted Oversight Committee on the Medical Council of India (OC), showed favour towards it

HT reports that the OC, in its letter to MCI and the director general, health services (DGHS), has favoured filling up the vacant seats with one extra round of counselling. Taking the stand of the OC, the ministry again approached the court, this time to see positive results.

The Court has instructed the DGHS to fix the counselling date and time for candidates, urging it to give ample publicity to the counselling schedule for five continuous days reports the Hindu. The publicity campaign will be carried out- both in Newspapers and on the Medical Council of India and DGHS websites.The order also marks the joining period after counselling to not extend beyond 4 days.The extension of the deadline is only applicable for the present academic year, the court has clarified.