The Supreme Court ruled that having a disability of 40% should not hinder a candidate’s admission to college, unless the medical board determines that the disability will interfere with their studies. The court stated that the board must also provide justification for why a person is deemed unfit to continue.
A panel consisting of Justices BR Gavai, Arvind Kumar, and KV Vishwanathan made this statement on October 14 during the hearing of the petition filed by Maharashtra medical student Omkar Ramchandra Gond. Ramchandra successfully cleared NEET- UG 24.
Gond was deemed ineligible to study MBBS because he has a 45% speech and permanent language impairment according to the 1997 Graduate Medical Education Regulations. Nevertheless, Gond was admitted by the court on September 18 following consultation with the medical board.
The court stated that the candidate must undergo a special assessment to determine the eligibility for admission of disabled students. If it is determined by the board that the individual is unable to finish their studies because of a disability, then admission may be refused.
Actually, as per the existing regulations of the National Medical Council (NMC), individuals with over 40% disability are not eligible to pursue MBBS. The bench ordered NMC to amend these regulations and embrace a accommodating and supportive approach towards disabled category applicants.
According to the Supreme Court, the disability board must consider the advantageous aspects when forming opinions until the National Medical Commission establishes suitable regulations, as stated in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment’s letter dated January 25, 2024.
The court stated that while the appellate body is not yet in place, candidates can challenge negative reviews from the Disability Assessment Board in court. The Special Leave Petition challenging the decision of the Bombay High Court was presented to the Supreme Court. The petition filed by Ramchandra was rejected by the Bombay High Court for a period of 3 weeks.
Previously on September 2, the creation of a medical board was mandated by the Supreme Court. After the medical board supported Ramchandra in their report, the court granted the appeal. While the bench was in session, they also honored Bharatanatyam performer Sudha Chandran, Arunima Sinha who conquered Mount Everest, Η Boniface Prabhu, well-known sports figure, entrepreneur Srikanth Bola, and Dr. Satendra Singh.
The court noted that within India’s long and distinguished list of individuals, there are some outstanding daughters and sons who have achieved remarkable success despite overcoming numerous challenges. The bench stated that the world would be significantly less rich if Homer, Milton, Mozart, Beethoven, Byron, and numerous other individuals had not been permitted to reach their maximum potential.