Supreme Court raps MP High Court, allows petitioner to complete BAMS degree

A bench of Justices set aside MP High Court's judgment which "decimated" entire labour of six years, put in by a candidate in completing his BAMS degree course for not having passed 10+2 with English at the time of his admission.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has said that an act of the court should, ordinarily, not prejudice anyone, as it allowed a candidate to complete his Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) degree course for he had cured the ineligibility of having not cleared 10+2 with English subject.

A bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Augustine George Masih set aside the Madhya Pradesh High Court's judgment which "decimated" entire labour of six years, put in by a candidate in completing his BAMS degree course for not having passed 10+2 with English at the time of his admission.

"Though there can be no dispute with the proposition that fulfilling the basic eligibility for admission to a course is a sine qua non, which ought not to be overlooked or ignored, the peculiar facts of the case on hand ought to have weighed with the High Court," the bench said.

The court allowed an appeal filed by Zaid Sheikh against the High Court's June 18, 2014 judgment which dismissed his plea.

"An act of the Court should, ordinarily, not prejudice anyone (Actus curiae neminem gravabit). This is a fundamental principle of justice, but it was disregarded by the High Court while considering the case of the appellant," the bench said.  

The appellant had pursued the entire studies of the course and had also completed part of his mandatory internship at the time his writ petition was dismissed. The High Court non-suited the appellant on the ground that he was initially ineligible to be admitted to BAMS Degree Course as he had not taken and passed ‘English’ as a subject in the qualifying examination of 10+2.

The bench noted his initial admission in the first college was in clear violation of the Madhya Pradesh Ayurveda/Unani/Homeopathy Undergraduate Entrance Examination Rules - 2008.The rules prescribed the eligibility condition that candidates of all categories and classes were required to have passed English as a subject in the qualifying examination of 10+2. 

However, the said college came to be de-recognised and all the students of that college were transferred to the Shaskiya Swasashi Dhanwantari Ayurvedic Medical College, Ujjain, and the appellant was allowed to pass English as a subject in Class 12, when he was provisionally admitted by the said college. 

"This fact ought to have been given more weightage by the High Court. More so, as the appellant had acted upon the allotment letter and reappeared for the Class 12 examination, twice over, with English as a subject and had passed it," the bench said.

The court also noted though, the interim order granted by the High Court on October 30, 2012 recorded that the appellant would not be entitled to claim equities, the fact that he was permitted to complete the entire course and had also finished part of his mandatory internship ought not to have been brushed aside lightly.   

"The appellant had put in nearly 6 years by then in pursuing BAMS degree course and the end result of the High Court’s order was to decimate his entire labour of all those years," the bench said. 

In any event, the appellant's so-called ineligibility, which was not essential in the context of the course that he had taken, was cured by him thereafter owing to the liberty given by the college itself while provisionally admitting him to the course in September, 2012, the bench noted.

"Given these peculiar facts, we are of the opinion that this is a fit case for interference so that the appellant is not left out in the cold after completing almost the entire course," the bench said.

The bench directed the authorities to permit the appellant to complete his course and internship in Shaskiya Swasashi Dhanwantari Ayurvedic Medical College, Ujjain, and thereafter issue him his BAMS degree in accordance with due procedure.

The appellant almost completed his education under the protection of interim orders granted by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, but was ultimately shown the door, the court said.