The Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court sought the state government’s stand in a plea filed by a medical student against a Rs 30 Lakh seat release bond signed by him while taking admission in medical college; this will be charged if the student leaves the seat without completing it. The course or original documents will not be returned.

Notification to participants, including the state government, a division bench Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Sushrut Dharmadhikari According to the order of defendant no. 3–Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College, Indore, to return the original documents of the petitioner student and issue a no-objection certificate.

“Respondent No. 3 is directed to hand over the original documents along with the No Objection Certificate to the petitioner by 18.11.2024 and they shall remain subject to the final outcome of the writ petition.” the court said.

The claim challenges Rule 15(1) (Kha) Madhya Pradesh Chikitsa Shiksha Pravesh Niyam (2018); Accordingly, if a person leaves his/her allotted seat, he/she has to deposit Rs. 30,00,000 as condition of withdrawal in favor of the college.

Petitioner Dr. Abhishek Mashih was admitted to MS Orthopedics in 2020 and faced various issues during his residency, resulting in the development of mental health issues. The petitioner alleged that he had long working hours of up to 72 hours, during which he was asked to work continuously without any breaks, sleep or rest.

The petitioner alleged that this treatment of junior assistants by senior doctors is nothing but another form of ragtag making students like the petitioner want to leave the seat. Many applications were made to the administration for corrections, but no corrections were made. The petitioner claimed that he attempted to continue the course in 2022, but had to abandon it again due to deteriorating health conditions.

Original documents of the petitioner, Rs. He was detained because he did not give it. 30 Lakhs as part of the bond. The petitioner was unable to access his own documents and was unable to apply for other job opportunities or educational options.

The defense states that the National Medical Commission recommended removing seat departure guarantees in January 2024 because they affect the student’s mental health. The deposit requirement for future batches was removed, but batches before 2024 were still covered by the policy, which also affected the petitioner.

In the petition, the petitioner prayed that Rule 15(1)(kha) of Madhya Pradesh Chikitsa Shiksha Pravesh Niyam 2018 be declared as ultra vires to Article 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India. He seeks directions to the medical college to return the original documents and issue the NOC to the petitioner.

Case title: Dr. Abhishek Masih v. State of Madhya Pradesh and Others

Case No: WP No. 35530, 2024