BJP steps in as Vaishno Devi medical college faces backlash over Muslim-majority MBBS list

Srinagar: A political storm has erupted around the Vaishno Devi shrine-funded medical college after 42 of 50 seats in its first MBBS batch went to Muslim students, sparking protests in Reasi district and prompting the Jammu and Kashmir BJP to formally intervene.

A BJP delegation led by Leader of Opposition in J&K Assembly, Sunil Sharma met Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday and submitted a memorandum seeking “corrective action” and a review of admission norms. The party spoke up after a week of demonstrations by right-wing groups alleging that the selection list ignored “Hindu sentiment.”

The backlash began when the J&K Board of Professional Entrance Examinations (BOPEE) issued the maiden NEET-UG seat-allotment list for the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME), showing Muslim candidates securing most seats on merit-cum-preference.

The VHP, Bajrang Dal, Yuva Rajput Sabha and other groups demanded the list be scrapped and urged the Shrine Board to seek minority-institution status to allow Hindu-specific quotas. Tensions rose earlier this week when protesters tried to force their way toward the campus and were stopped by police. Parts of Katra and Reasi saw brief shutdowns as the agitation widened.

The Shrine Board, which runs SMVDIME, has not issued a public statement. Officials say the college has no role in selecting students, as admissions are conducted entirely by BOPEE under NEET-UG rules.

BOPEE has reiterated that allotments were made strictly on merit and candidate preference, following the standard procedure used for all government medical colleges.

SMVDIME was granted 50 MBBS seats this year, all under the Union Territory’s centralised counselling pool, leaving no scope for religion-based reservation. Officials stress the institute is not a minority institution, a status required to introduce community-linked quotas.

Legal experts say minority status cannot be granted merely because an institution is funded by a religious body. Under constitutional provisions and the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions Act, only institutions with demonstrable and exclusive community control qualify — a threshold that public shrine boards generally do not meet.

With protests hardening and political pressure mounting, the administration, Shrine Board and BOPEE face a delicate balancing act between upholding merit-based admissions and addressing the growing local anger over the composition of the college’s first MBBS batch.