Ouster of Jat community from OBC list to stay, Supreme Court tells Medical Students

Standing firm by its March 17 judgment on removing Jat community from the Central list of Other Backward Classes, the Supreme Court, on Tuesday, refused relief to a group of medical students caught midway between the examination and admission processes when the apex court pronounced the verdict.

On March 17, this year, a bench led by Justice Ranjan Gogoi quashed a March 4, 2014 notification issued by the UPA government including the Jat community in the Central OBC list.

The students had moved the Supreme Court last week seeking clarification on their fate – that is of those who had already applied for admission under the OBC category prior to the judgment.

They contended that future of students like them, who appeared in All India Post Graduate Dental Entrance Examination (AIPGDEE) 2015 and All India Post Graduate Medical Entrance Examination (AIPGMEE) 2015 and secured ranks in OBC category has now become uncertain.

The students pointed out that different institutions, including the Delhi University, had drawn fresh lists of candidates post the March 17 verdict. They said, now, they are being considered under the General Category.

“The candidates are bound to suffer heavy losses in the form of an academic year, time and resources, if the said judgment is allowed to apply to candidates who are in a transitory phase in the process of completing admission and enrollment,” their application said.

However, a Bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Rohinton Fali Nariman, dismissed their contentions, while observing that “no vested rights could be created” in their favour post the judgment.

Justice Gogoi, who authored the March 17 judgment, however observed that admissions made under the Jat quota prior to the date of judgment would remain effective as their rights have been “crystallised”.

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