Punjab News Desk !!! The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the NRI quota appeal in a major setback to the Punjab government. The Supreme Court termed the expansion of NRI quota in medical colleges in Punjab as a “betrayal of the education system”. While hearing the petition, the Supreme Court also reprimanded the Punjab government and called the NRI quota a fraud. The court expressed strong displeasure that this expansion is depriving more deserving students of admission. A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud upheld the order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had struck down the Punjab government’s plan to expand the parameters of the NRI quota to include distant relatives.
“We have to stop this NRI quota game now! This is a total fraud, and that is what we are doing to our education system,” the Chief Justice said. A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra said the NRI quota was being misused to disrupt the merit-based admission process. The court described the broad definition of NRI eligibility as a “money-making ploy” that undermines the credibility of the education system.
What is the NRI quota of Punjab Government?
After the decision of the Supreme Court, the Punjab government will no longer be able to expand the scope of NRI quota in medical admission. The Supreme Court rejected the appeal of the Lords Government of Punjab saying that the decision of the High Court is absolutely correct. Under this quota, such people or their children do not have to appear in the entrance examination in educational institutions, which are conducted by citizens living in India. Now the Punjab government wanted to increase this quota by 15 percent and include distant relatives of NRIs in it.
Misuse of NRI quota
According to the court, a notification issued by the Punjab government had redefined the definition of NRI candidates to include relatives such as uncles, aunts, grandparents and cousins. The court said the purpose of the expansion was to provide study opportunities to NRI students but it was being misused.
During the hearing, senior advocate Shadan Farasat argued that the broad interpretation of the NRI quota was also being used in other states such as Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. However, the Supreme Court outrightly rejected this argument and said that this broad definition was diluting merit, and giving admissions on the basis of wealth and connections, bypassing deserving candidates.
