The Supreme Court on Monday declined to interfere with the nativity criterion introduced by the Kerala government for admission to the MBBS and postgraduate courses in private medical colleges.

A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Mohan M Shantanagoudar, however, allowed petitioner K M Navas, executive trustee of Kozhikode-based KMCT Medical College to approach the high court.

The court pointed out to senior advocate Jayant Bhushan and advocate Y Shiva Santosh, representing the petitioner, that counselling for the postgraduate seats was already over. For undergraduate seats, the petitioner can approach the high court, the bench said.

The counsel then preferred to withdraw the petition. During the hearing, Bhushan contended that criterion like nativity for admission would come in the way of private unaided minority institutions' bid to seek meritorious candidates from all over the country through central counselling. The provision also violated fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution, the petitioner claimed.

The college, which gives Muslim community a significant representation, further contended every private self-financing institution must have the right to choose its intake from an all-India pool of applications as such institutions functioned from funds generated from fees alone, and they do not rely on state funding in any manner whatsoever.

According to MCI regulations, 15% seats in undergraduate courses and 50% in postgraduate courses in state colleges are to be filled from the all-India quota.