The Supreme Court has adjourned till June 18, Friday, the hearing in a plea filed by candidates due to appear in the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) and seeking a postponement of the said exam from the National Board of Examination amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
A bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and MR Shah heard the plea against the notification issued by the National Board of Examinations for conducting the FMGE in June 2021.
During the hearing today, Senior Advocate Sanjay Hegde appeared along with AOR Charu Mathur and Tanvi Dubey on behalf of the petitioner candidates and prayed for the postponement of FMGE exam.
The bench replied, let the high court order come, it must be reasoned order. We will keep the matter on Friday.
Senior counsel Hegde submitted the exam is on Friday and the matter will become infructuous by then.
“We cannot help, the bench is not available any other day,” said the Court. “Tell your clients to prepare for the exam and appear in the exam,” it opined.
FMGE is one of the mandatory requirements for an Indian citizen who has a medical degree from a college outside India to practice medicine in the country. The National Board of Examination has issued a notice along with information bulletin titled ‘FMGE Screening Test Information Bulletin’ in which the board notified the schedule of the examination. The candidates were informed that the last date for submission of application form is 06.05.2021 and that FMGE-2021 will be conducted on 18.06.2021 because of the abrupt announcement, the petitioners contended that they are in excessive mental pressure.
The petitioners are concerned that the conduct of the exam at this stage will severely affect not only the examinees but also their family members and that this cycle will never cease and only act as a catalyst.
While discussing about the serious problems faced by thousands of students across the country in view of Impugned Notice providing for the schedule of the FMGE exam, the petitioners seeks following directions-
– To quash the Notice dated 15.04.2021 issued by the National Board of Examination which is in regard with providing for the schedule of the FMGE to be conducted on 18.06.2021
– To direct the National Board of Examination to postpone the FMGE, scheduled to be conducted on 18.06.2021
– To direct the National board of Examination to have centers in each state
The petitioners further seeks intervention from the Apex court for protection of their Right to Health reminding that it is an inseparable part of Right to Life enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India while calling the Board decision’s unreasonable, arbitrary and a mindless exercise as it fails to take into consideration the hardship which will be caused to thousands of examinees, who will be sitting for the examination. Also, this decision will deprive the candidates who are residing outside India.
Thereafter, the petitioner highlighted the decision of conducting exam is against the Prime Minister’s statement made on 03.05.2021 wherein NEET-PG exam was postponed for 4 months with an assurance that NEET PG will not be conducted till 31.08.2021 and further following statements-
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– Medical personnel completing 100 days of Covid duties will be given priority in forthcoming regular Government recruitments;
– Medical interns to be deployed in Covid Management duties under the supervision of their faculty;
– Final Year MBBS students can be utilized for tele-consultation and monitoring of mild Covid cases under supervision of Faculty;
– B.Sc/GNM qualified nurses to be utilized in full-time Covid nursing duties under the supervision of Senior Doctors and Nurses.
– Medical personnel completing 100 days of Covid duties will be given Prime Minister’s distinguished Covid National Service Samman.
Furthermore, the Petitioner submitted that the Supreme Court in plethora of judgements have held in clear and categorical terms that any restriction on the right to life must be by a procedure prescribed by “law” and such “law” must be reasonable, fair and just.