OCI students can apply for MBBS except govt seats, NRI quota: HC

The High Court of Karnataka on Friday passed an order that treats Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) on a par with Non-resident Indians (NRI) and makes them eligible for the first year MBBS course for the year 2017-2018 under various categories.

A division bench comprising Justice H G Ramesh and Justice K S Mudagal said OCI students’ applications for medical and dental seats will be considered under various categories, except for government seats.

The OCI students will not be considered even for the NRI quota of medical admissions as this provision has been exclusively created for NRIs by the Supreme Court.

OCI students had challenged Rule 5 of the Karnataka Selection of Candidates for Admission to Government Seats in Professional Educational Institutions Rules, 2006. The rule restrains OCIs from applying for government seats.

Advocate Ajoy Kumar Patil had contended that with the new format of medical seats, OCI students had problems in applying for medical seats under the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA). The counsel said that although KEA had made changes allowing OCI students, these students wanted government seats too. The bench however declined OCI students’ plea upholding Rule 5 of 2006 denying them government seats.

Land acquisition

The High Court of Karnataka on Friday orally asked the BDA commissioner to be present before the court to explain the Authority’s stand on acquisition of 16 guntas of land in RMV Extension.

The owners of the land - Varadaramappa and others - have moved the court contending that though the BDA acquired their land for developing sites, later they learnt that a road was proposed through their land.

They petitioners they had not been paid compensation till now. Justice B S Patil directed the BDA commissioner to make the Authority’s stand clear during the next hearing on July 12.