SC stays HC order quashing English test for medical seats

The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the Karnataka High Court order which set aside the rule mandating 50 per cent marks in English for students to pursue MBBS course under the management quota in private colleges.

A bench of justices Madan B Lokur and S A Bobde suspended the order passed on August 18 on a petition filed by the Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (ComedK).

The court, admitting the petition for hearing, issued notice to a group of students who had challenged the rule framed by the examination conducting body for private professional colleges.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the ComedK, submitted that the minimum knowledge of English is must for students seeking admission to the MBBS courses.

He said the students first participated in the entrance test agreeing to the condition but challenged it only when they could not meet the minimum requirement. He urged the court to stay the order as the counselling was scheduled to begin on August 27.

The HC had directed the ComedK and other authorities to consider the case of four students, who had filed a petition, for admission to the MBBS course solely based on their marks secured in Physics, Chemistry and Biology (PCB).