The Delhi High Court has set aside the National Medical Commission’s (NMC) regulation that imposed a complete prohibition on the migration of MBBS students, holding it to be arbitrary and unconstitutional.
In a recent judgment, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice and Justice Tejas Karia ruled that Regulation 18 of the Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2023, which barred undergraduate medical students from seeking transfer from one medical institution to another, cannot be sustained in law.
Regulation 18 stated that no student allotted to a medical college shall be permitted to migrate to any other institution, notwithstanding anything contained in the regulations. The Court held that reliance on this provision to reject a student’s migration request was unjustified and quashed the decision of the NMC denying the transfer.
The High Court observed that a blanket ban on migration violates Article 14 of the Constitution as it fails to consider exceptional and compassionate circumstances. It noted that while maintaining uniform standards in medical education is a legitimate aim, an absolute prohibition ignores real-life contingencies and disproportionately impacts deserving students.
The ruling came in a case filed by a medical student with 40 per cent visual impairment, who had sought migration from Government Medical College, Barmer in Rajasthan to a medical college in Delhi on medical and disability-related grounds. The student had qualified NEET-UG 2023 under the OBC–Persons with Disabilities category but was initially denied participation in counselling as a PwD candidate, forcing him to approach the Supreme Court. The apex court later directed authorities to recognise him as a PwD candidate.
By the time he was permitted to participate in counselling, only the stray vacancy round remained, limiting his options and resulting in his admission to the Barmer medical college. Subsequently, he sought transfer to Delhi, citing worsening of his eye condition due to the harsh climatic conditions in Barmer and the need for specialised treatment at AIIMS Delhi. However, the NMC rejected his request in December 2024, citing the removal of migration provisions under the 2023 Regulations.
The High Court rejected the Commission’s argument that a complete ban was necessary to prevent misuse. It held that apprehensions of misuse cannot justify an absolute prohibition and that migration could instead be permitted in rare and deserving cases, subject to strict safeguards and conditions.
The Bench further noted that the petitioner’s predicament was largely a result of the authorities’ failure to timely recognise his PwD status, which deprived him of an opportunity to choose a suitable college earlier. Holding the student responsible for accepting a distant college despite his disability was found to be unreasonable.
Relying on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, the Court reiterated that authorities are obligated to provide reasonable accommodation and ensure equality and non-discrimination. It held that denial of transfer to a student whose medical condition had worsened due to environmental factors amounted to a failure to provide such accommodation.
Emphasising that administrative efficiency cannot override constitutional guarantees and human dignity, the Court declared Regulation 18 to be manifestly unreasonable and arbitrary. It ruled that the provision fails the test of reasonableness under Article 14 and is therefore ultra vires and invalid.
The Court directed the NMC to reconsider the petitioner’s migration request afresh within three weeks, without relying on the invalidated regulation, and to assess the case in light of disability rights and the requirement of reasonable accommodation. It also instructed the Commission to frame a proper policy or amend the regulations to allow medical student migration in exceptional cases, subject to appropriate conditions and safeguards.