Mumbai: In the wake of continuous protests by students over the Maratha quota reservation in admissions to postgraduate (PG) medical and dental courses, the state on Tuesday issued a stay on admissions for seven days starting from May 13, for students to fill their college preferences. However, students are not satisfied with this decision as they do not want a stay but are demanding confirmation of their seats under the Maratha quota.
This decision has come after 206 students have been protesting at Azad Maidan over the decision of the Supreme Court to cancel the Maratha quota reservation for PG admissions. The SC upheld the decision of the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court (HC) to consider Maratha quota inapplicable for admissions to medical and dental colleges for the current academic year.
But despite the stay of seven days and the appeal for extension, students have decided to continue with their protest. Shivaji Bhosale, a student, said, “We are not demanding more time for admissions. We want our seats under the Maratha quota. We also want the colleges and branches where we have already been allotted seats as per the first merit round. We will continue protesting till these demands are fulfilled.”
The state has initiated this stay to seek more time to review the decision of the SC and find a solution. Girish Mahajan, the medical education minister, said, “We have initiated the stay so that we get time to resolve the ongoing issue. Students have also approached the court to highlight this matter. We will find a solution in the interest of the students within three to four days.”
The state aims to extend the deadline of May 25 for admissions given by the Supreme Court (SC). Around 16 per cent seats are reserved for Maratha quota under the socially and economically backward class (SEBC) and 10 per cent for those from the economically weak sections (EWS) in medical and dental colleges.
Students of the open category opposed this decision and approached the court to cancel these reservations. Chetna Kajaria, a student of the open category, said, “Our admissions will be affected due to this stay. We should not suffer, as admissions for medical and dental course should be purely based on merit instead of any quota reservation.”
