Case: JANHIT ABHIYAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

1. The entitlement of the petitioners to an appropriate interim order is the precise question that is being dealt with by the Court by the present order.2. By the 103rd Constitutional amendment, after clause (5) of Article 16, the following clause numbered as clause (6) has been inserted:-?(6) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clause (4), in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of ten per cent of the posts in each category.?3. Though an enabling provision, the State of Maharashtra by notifications dated 12.2.2019 and 7.3.2019 has extended the benefit of reservation to the extent of 10% to economically weaker sections, inter alia, in postgraduate medical courses. The bone of contention between the parties is whether the aforesaid decision following the Constitutional amendment will apply to the ongoing admission process which had commenced in the month of November, 2018 i.e. well before the coming into force of the Constitutional amendment (January, 2019) and the notifications of February and March, 2019.4. Not only we are reminded of the time-tested principle of law that the modalities of selection cannot be changed after initiation of the process, in a similar matter involving reservation of 16% seats for socially and educationally backward classes including the Maratha community in the educational institutions in the State of Maharashtra in terms of provisions of the Maharashtra State Reservation (of Seats for Admission in Educational Institutions in the State and for Appointments in the Public Services and Posts under the State) for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act, 2018, the Bombay High Court had taken the view that the said Act having come into force with effect from 30.11.2018, could not be made applicable to the very same admission process as the same had been initiated earlier i.e. on 2.11.2018. The special leave petition against the said order of the Bombay High Court has since been dismissed by this Court.5. Having considered the matter, we are of the view, at this stage, that though the State may act under the enabling provision contained in Article 16(6) of the Constitution, as introduced by the 103rd Constitutional amendment, unless additional seats are sanctioned by the Medical Council of India, the existing seats cannot be subjected to the provisions of the aforesaid Constitutional amendment by issuing appropriate notifications, as has been done in this case.

Decision reasoning: 1[ds]4. Not only we are reminded of the time-tested principle of law that the modalities of selection cannot be changed after initiation of the process, in a similar matter involving reservation of 16% seats for socially and educationally backward classes including the Maratha community in the educational institutions in the State of Maharashtra in terms of provisions of the Maharashtra State Reservation (of Seats for Admission in Educational Institutions in the State and for Appointments in the Public Services and Posts under the State) for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act, 2018, the Bombay High Court had taken the view that the said Act having come into force with effect from 30.11.2018, could not be made applicable to the very same admission process as the same had been initiated earlier i.e. on 2.11.2018. The special leave petition against the said order of the Bombay High Court has since been dismissed by this Court.Having considered the matter, we are of the view, at this stage, that though the State may act under the enabling provision contained in Article 16(6) of the Constitution, as introduced by the 103rd Constitutional amendment, unless additional seats are sanctioned by the Medical Council of India, the existing seats cannot be subjected to the provisions of the aforesaid Constitutional amendment by issuing appropriate notifications, as has been done in this case.