Madras HC upholds 7.5% quota for govt school students in medical exams

The order was issued in response to a number of petitions contesting the constitutionality of the quota. During the debates, the Tamil Nadu government defended the reservation, claiming that it helped bridge the rural-urban and rich-poor divides in MBBS admissions.

The Madras High Court on Thursday ruled in favour of state law providing 7.5% horizontal reservation to students from govt schools in medical examination. The first bench, comprised of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy, urged the state to examine the quota every five years, as suggested by the quota committee.

The order was issued in response to a number of petitions contesting the constitutionality of the quota. During the debates, the Tamil Nadu government defended the reservation, claiming that it helped bridge the rural-urban and rich-poor divides in MBBS admissions.

According to the petitioners, the general category candidates have just 31% of the seats available due to the state's 69 percent reservation policy. According to them, the 7.5 percent quota has pushed it even farther.