Lucknow: The Allahabad High Court's Lucknow bench has annulled the entire D.Pharma counseling process in Uttar Pradesh, reprimanding the state government for violating the Supreme Court's stipulated timeline.
Justice Pankaj Bhatia's single bench stated that the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) has until August 31, 2025, as per the Supreme Court, to grant recognition to institutions. Counseling can only commence after this date.
However, the state government released its counseling schedule prematurely, which the court deemed illegal and detrimental to both students and institutions.
The Court noted that the state government did not seek any modification to the Supreme Court's directives and initiated counseling unilaterally, thereby preventing many institutions from participating in student selection.
The High Court has now ordered the PCI to decide on pending recognition applications within two weeks. It also suggested that the PCI consider a policy for granting permanent recognition for five years instead of year to year approvals.
