The Supreme Court upheld the high court’s verdict as “absolutely right,” stressing the harmful consequences of allowing such practices
The Supreme Court, on September 24, dismissed the Punjab government’s appeal challenging a high court ruling that overturned its move to widen the Non-Resident Indian (NRI) quota for undergraduate medical and dental course admissions, reported PTI.
The court described the extended definition as a fraudulent attempt to bypass merit-based admissions.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court had earlier, on September 10, nullified the AAP-led government’s August 20 decision to broaden the NRI quota. This extension aimed to include distant relatives of NRIs, such as uncles, aunts, grandparents, and cousins, under the 15% reserved category for medical admissions.
“The so-called precedents must give way to the primacy of law,” the court said, underscoring that merit should prevail in admissions, particularly for medical courses
In a strongly worded rebuke, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, along with Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, criticized the expansion, calling it “a money spinning machine.” The bench emphasized that the NRI quota has evolved into a mechanism for exploiting the system, saying, “This fraud must come to an end now.” They also highlighted that extending the quota to distant relatives would disadvantage meritorious candidates with much higher marks in the NEET-UG exam, as those with distant connections abroad could claim admissions unjustly.
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