The High Court
Case Details
Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK WP(C) No.1117 of 2025 Manisha Prusty and Others …. Petitioners Ms. Pami Rath, Sr. Advocate -versus- State of Odisha, represented through its Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare and Others …. Opp. Parties Ms. B.L. Tripathy, Additional Standing Counsel Mr. R.C. Mohanty, counsel for DMET Mr. A.K. Ray, Sr. Panel Counsel for INC WP(C) No.1993 of 2025 Barsharani Sahoo and Another …. Petitioners
Legal Reasoning
Mr. S. Satapathy, Advocate -versus- State of Odisha, represented through its Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare and Others …. Opp. Parties Ms. B.L. Tripathy, Additional Standing Counsel Mr. R.C. Mohanty, counsel for DMET Mr. A.K. Ray, Sr. Panel Counsel for INC WP(C) No.4832 of 2025 Shrabani Parida and Others -versus- …. Petitioners Mr. S. Rout, Advocate State of Odisha, represented through its Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare and Others …. Opp. Parties Ms. B.L. Tripathy, Additional Standing Counsel Mr. R.C. Mohanty, counsel for DMET Mr. A.K. Ray, Sr. Panel Counsel for INC Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 WP(C) No.1341 of 2025 Suchismita Rout and Another …. Petitioners Mr. P.K. Mohapatra, Advocate -versus- State of Odisha, represented through its Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare and Others …. Opp. Parties Ms. B.L. Tripathy, Additional Standing Counsel Mr. R.C. Mohanty, counsel for DMET Mr. A.K. Ray, Sr. Panel Counsel for INC Mr. B.K. Ragada, counsel for O.P. No.4 CORAM: JUSTICE B. P. ROUTRAY JUSTICE CHITTARANJAN DASH
Decision
ORDER 19.3.2025 Order No. 08. 1. Heard Mrs. P. Rath, learned senior counsel along with Mr. S. Satapathy, Mr. S. Rout and Mr. P.K. Mohapatra, learned counsels for the Petitioners, Mr. R.C. Mohanty, learned counsel for DMET, Mr. A.K. Ray, learned senior panel counsel for Indian Nursing Council, Mr. B.K. Ragada, learned counsel for Odisha University of Health Services and Ms. B.L. Tripathy, learned ASC for State. 2. All the Petitioners in above four writ petitions belong to SEBC category. 3. Initially the advertisement for admission into different nursing courses for the Session 2024-2025 was issued on 20th May, 2024 including the course for Basic B.Sc. Nursing. The Page 2 of 7 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 schedule for entrance examination was fixed to 20th July, 2024 for Basic B.Sc. Nursing course (Annexure-C/2). In the initial advertisement, no reservation was prescribed for SEBC candidates and the same was challenged by some other petitioners in WP(C) No.16382 of 2024 and this court disposed of said writ petition on 31st July, 2024. Further, 5 other petitioners belonging to SEBC category approached this court in WP(C) No.25371 of 2024 praying for inclusion of their candidature for extending the benefits provided to the OBC candidates. WP(C) No.25371 of 2024 was disposed of by this court on 26th November, 2024 with the observation that the SEBC candidates in State of Odisha are entitled to such relaxation / benefits as provided to OBC candidates prescribed in the guideline of Indian Nursing Council, and direction was issued to consider the candidature of those petitioners for their admission to B.Sc. Nursing course. After the judgment was passed in WP(C) No.25371 of 2024, the DMET extended the benefits of relaxation to those eligible candidates under SEBC category before the last date of admission, i.e. on 30th November, 2024 and a notification to that effect was uploaded immediately in the website on 27th November, 2024. 4. It is now contended on behalf of present Petitioners that though they belong to SEBC category but could not be aware of such notification of the DMET dated 27th November, 2024 permitting SEBC candidates with same relaxation given to OBC candidates and therefore, they could not apply online within the stipulated date, i.e. 30th November, 2024. It is contended on Page 3 of 7 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 behalf of the Petitioners that within the short period of 3 days they were unable to know about such decision taken by the DMET to permit SEBC candidates and therefore, a further opportunity should be granted to them to make their applications beyond the last date prescribed by Indian Nursing Council. 5. It is also submitted on behalf of the Petitioners that in fact they all have taken admission under the management quota in private colleges after 30th November, 2024, specifically in the month of December and they only required to be permitted to appear in the examination held by Odisha Council of Nursing for B.Sc. Nursing course. 6. Mr. Mohanty, learned counsel for DMET submits that once the candidates could not take admission within the stipulated period they cannot be permitted to validate their admissions even under management quota to make them eligible to appear in the examination for the course. A detailed counter affidavit has been filed on behalf of the DMET denying the contentions of Petitioners. 7. Indian Nursing Council have filed their reply stating that the power to prescribe conditions of admission including last date of application is within the statutory power of the Council under relevant regulations. It is also contended that the academic session for the year 2024-25 has already started and classes are being taken up regularly. So permitting the Petitioners at this stage would disrupt the entire programme of the academic year. Page 4 of 7 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 8. We are aware of the settled law that extension of last date of admission prescribed by the authority cannot be reviewed judicially by this court and no student should be permitted to take admission after the last date. The decision of this court dated 14th May, 2024 passed in WP(C) No.39868 of 2023 is relevant to be reproduced below:- “25. Considering the entire conspectus of the matter as discussed above, the reliefs which the petitioners are seeking in the present batch of writ petitions cannot be granted for the following reasons: (i) The institutions cannot be allowed to give admissions to students for the academic sessions 2023-24 as the extended cut-off date for such admission prescribed by the INC expired on 30.10.2023 itself. The said timeline, in the Court’s opinion should not be extended by this Court exercising power of judicial review under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. (ii) In view of the policy of the INC that admissions to such courses would be only through CEE and no candidate who has not qualified or not appeared in the CEE shall be given admission, such requirement which aims to achieve the object of admission of meritorious candidates in the courses should not be tinkered with, more so, in view of the law laid down by the Supreme Court in P.A. Inamdar (supra) and Modern Dental College & Research Centre (supra). 26. However, while rejecting the reliefs sought for in the present batch of writ petitions, we deem it just and proper to issue following directions in the interest of justice and to avoid recurrence of such situation, as has arisen in the present batch of cases in future, because of non-adherence to the calendar prescribed by the Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Odisha: - Page 5 of 7 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 (i) All concerned shall, without any exception, adhere to date/time schedule prescribed by the Government of Odisha in the Health and Family Welfare Department vide Letter No.26601 dated 22.10.2019; for issuance of NOC and grant of recognition. (ii) There shall be no departure, in any case, from the said time schedule without the leave of this Court. Any departure from time schedule shall be viewed seriously by this Court. (iii) Unless otherwise provided by the INC, no admissions shall be given by any nursing institution in the courses without merit- based CEE. (iv) No admission shall be given to any student in a nursing institution after the cut-off date for admission, as may be prescribed by the INC.” 9. It is true that many more seats in B.Sc. Nursing course are still lying vacant in different private colleges as admitted by the parties. What is contended on behalf of the Petitioners that they have already taken admission under management quota in the month of December in different private colleges and pursuing their studies by attending classes till date is not disputed. So in such peculiar circumstances, taking note of the fact that the Petitioners are genuine candidates under SEBC category who could not apply their candidature online before the last date, we leave it to the discretion of the DMET to take a decision with regard to permitting them to appear in the examination concerned, provided the concerned institutions have taken lawful steps to intimate admission of the Petitioners to concerned authority. The decision shall be taken by the DMET within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order. Page 6 of 7 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Signed by: MANAS KUMAR PANDA Designation: Personal Assistant Reason: Authentication Location: OHC, Cuttack Date: 19-Mar-2025 17:23:54 10. With aforesaid observations and directions the writ petitions stand disposed of. Judge (B.P. Routray) Judge M.K.Panda (Chittaranjan Dash) Page 7 of 7