THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
New Delhi, Oct 15: The Supreme Court stated on Tuesday that having a benchmark disability of 40 per cent does not prohibit an individual from pursuing medical education, unless there is an expert report indicating that the candidate is incapable of pursuing an MBBS degree.
A bench comprising Justices BR Gavai, Aravind Kumar, and KV Viswanathan provided comprehensive reasoning for its September 18 order, which permitted a candidate to enroll in an MBBS course after the medical board concluded that he could pursue medical education without any obstacles.
The bench stated that the disability assessment board should evaluate a candidate’s ability to pursue the MBBS course if they have a disability.
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“Mere existence of benchmark disability will not disqualify a candidate from being eligible for the MBBS course. The disability board assessing the disability of the candidate must positively record whether the disability of the candidate will or will not come in the way of the candidate pursuing the course,” the bench remarked.
The Supreme Court added that if the disability board finds the candidate ineligible to pursue the course, it should explain the reasons for its conclusion.
The court delivered its verdict in response to a petition from student Omkar, who challenged the Graduate Medical Education Regulation of 1997, which prohibits individuals with a disability of 40 percent or more from pursuing an MBBS degree.
