<div align="justify">The Medical Council of India (MCI) on Thursday informed the High Court of Karnataka that the state government does not have the powers to decide on the citizenship-related issues with regard to including Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) students under the NRI quota for medical admissions.<br /><br />The state government, in the previous hearing, had said that OCIs have already been included under the definition of Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and NRIs. <br /><br />Advocate N Khetty, representing MCI, submitted to the court that there is a 2009 notification by the Union government which allows even a foreign national to fly to India and write the medical entrance exam and get a medical seat. But the NRI quota, which has been created through a Supreme Court direction, does not come under the statute. Hence, OCIs cannot be included under the NRI quota. These submissions were made with regard to a batch of petitions filed by OCI students who have challenged Rule 5 of the Karnataka Selection of Candidates for Admission to Government Seats in Professional Educational Institutions Rules, 2006. <br /><br />The rule restrains OCIs from applying for government seats. It states: ‘No candidate is eligible for admission to government seats unless he is a citizen of India’.<br /><br /></div>
<div align="justify">The Medical Council of India (MCI) on Thursday informed the High Court of Karnataka that the state government does not have the powers to decide on the citizenship-related issues with regard to including Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) students under the NRI quota for medical admissions.<br /><br />The state government, in the previous hearing, had said that OCIs have already been included under the definition of Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and NRIs. <br /><br />Advocate N Khetty, representing MCI, submitted to the court that there is a 2009 notification by the Union government which allows even a foreign national to fly to India and write the medical entrance exam and get a medical seat. But the NRI quota, which has been created through a Supreme Court direction, does not come under the statute. Hence, OCIs cannot be included under the NRI quota. These submissions were made with regard to a batch of petitions filed by OCI students who have challenged Rule 5 of the Karnataka Selection of Candidates for Admission to Government Seats in Professional Educational Institutions Rules, 2006. <br /><br />The rule restrains OCIs from applying for government seats. It states: ‘No candidate is eligible for admission to government seats unless he is a citizen of India’.<br /><br /></div>
