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Schedule Prescribed by Mci Is Binding on All Concerned

Case

Medical Council of India v. V.N. Public Health & Educational Trust & Ors.
Civil Appeal No. 3964 of 2016, Supreme Court of India.^[1]^[2]

Background and Facts

V.N. Public Health & Educational Trust submitted a scheme dated 30 August 2015 to the Central Government seeking permission to establish a new medical college from the academic year 2016–17. The Central Government forwarded this application to the Medical Council of India (MCI) by letter dated 23 September 2015 for processing under the Establishment of Medical College Regulations, 1999.^[3]^[2]

On scrutiny, MCI found that the Essentiality Certificate issued by the Government of Kerala in favour of the Trust was not in the format prescribed by the 1999 Regulations and, moreover, was only a conditional certificate. Relying on the Supreme Court’s earlier decision in Royal Medical Trust (Registered) v. Union of India & Anr., MCI decided to recommend disapproval of the Trust’s scheme for the 2016–17 academic year.^[2]^[1]

The Central Government thereafter called upon the Trust to appear before a Committee on 16 November 2015 to explain its position, but the Trust did not appear and the matter was decided ex parte.^[2]

Proceedings before the Kerala High Court

Aggrieved by the issuance of an invalid Essentiality Certificate and the consequent disapproval of its scheme, the Trust filed W.P.(C) No. 35705 of 2015 before the Kerala High Court at Ernakulam.^[2]

By order dated 25 November 2015, the learned Single Judge directed that the Trust’s application for establishment of a new medical college “shall not be rejected” on account of deficiencies in the renewed Essentiality Certificate and ordered the third respondent to pass appropriate orders within ten days.^[2]

On 16 December 2015, the Single Judge passed a further order noting that:

The Trust is an educational agency that had applied to establish a medical college.^[2]
The original Essentiality Certificate suffered from defects as it was not in the required format.^[2]
Pursuant to interim directions, the Trust sought a fresh revised Essentiality Certificate, which had now been obtained and submitted.^[2]

The Court then directed the first respondent to consider the Trust’s application afresh and take a decision after hearing it, in accordance with law.^[2]

MCI filed Writ Appeal No. 96 of 2016 before a Division Bench of the High Court, contending that the Central Government’s letter dated 23 December 2015 asking MCI to review its recommendation could not be implemented because of the binding time schedule for processing medical college applications. MCI pointed out that:^[2]

It was required to make its recommendation to the Central Government by 15 December 2015.^[2]
The Central Government had to issue the Letter of Intent by 15 January 2016.^[2]

The Division Bench nevertheless held that the Central Government had sufficient power to extend the time schedule “to a certain extent” and, since the Central Government had asked MCI to reconsider the application, the court should not interfere at that stage. It also noted that the Single Judge had only directed the Central Government to consider the Trust’s application, and that process had already concluded with the Central Government’s letter dated 23 December 2015.^[2]

Supreme Court’s Decision

MCI challenged the High Court’s orders before the Supreme Court by way of special leave, and the Supreme Court allowed the appeal, setting aside both the Single Judge’s and the Division Bench’s judgments.^[1]^[2]

The Court examined the Essentiality Certificate dated 1 August 2015 and held that it was clearly a conditional certificate, as confirmed by MCI’s communication dated 19 October 2015. A conditional Essentiality Certificate, in the Court’s view, cannot be treated as the requisite certificate under the Regulations because the conditions essential to the certificate must already be fulfilled when the application is made.^[1]^[2]

The prescribed format requires the State Government to certify that adequate clinical material as per MCI norms “is available”; this availability must exist in praesenti (at the present time), not merely as a condition to be satisfied at some later stage. Since the Trust’s application was accompanied only by such a conditional certificate, it was defective and could not be treated as a valid Essentiality Certificate in law.^[1]^[2]

In these circumstances, the Supreme Court held that the High Court could not have directed consideration of the Trust’s application for inspection or processing for the 2016–17 academic year. Such directions, the Court said, were contrary to its earlier rulings in Educare Charitable Trust v. Union of India & Ors. and Royal Medical Trust (Registered) v. Union of India & Anr., which emphasised strict compliance with MCI’s regulations and procedural requirements.^[1]^[2]

Critically, the Court reaffirmed that the time schedule (Schedule) prescribed by MCI for submission, scrutiny, recommendation, and grant of permission—approved by the Supreme Court in earlier cases—is binding on all concerned authorities. MCI itself cannot transgress this schedule, and High Courts cannot issue directions that effectively override or extend it for a particular institution or academic year.^[1]^[2]

Accordingly, the Supreme Court held that the directions of the Single Judge and the Division Bench of the Kerala High Court were wholly unsustainable and set them aside.^[1]^[2]

Operative Directions

The Supreme Court:

Allowed MCI’s appeal and quashed the judgments and orders of the Kerala High Court.^[1]^[2]
Clarified that it would be open to the Trust to submit a fresh application for the next academic year, strictly in accordance with the MCI Regulations and the prescribed time schedule.^[1]^[2]
Directed that such a fresh application, if made, would be considered appropriately.^[1]^[2]
Made no order as to costs.^[1]^[2]

Key Legal Principles Clarified

Validity of Essentiality Certificate
1. An Essentiality Certificate that is conditional or not in the prescribed format is not a valid certificate in law for the purposes of Section 10‑A of the Indian Medical Council Act and the 1999 Regulations.^[3]^[1]^[2]
1. The requirement that adequate clinical material “is available” must be satisfied at the time of the application; future or contingent availability is insufficient.^[1]^[2]
Binding Nature of MCI Time Schedule
1. The Schedule of dates for submission, scrutiny, recommendations, and grant of permission, as framed by MCI and approved by the Supreme Court, is binding on all stakeholders including the Central Government, State Governments, institutions, and MCI itself.^[4]^[1]^[2]
1. Courts cannot, by interim or final orders, direct inspections or consideration of applications in a manner that effectively alters or bypasses this approved schedule for a particular academic year.^[1]^[2]
Judicial Restraint in Regulatory Matters
1. High Courts, while exercising writ jurisdiction, must respect the regulatory framework and timelines approved by the Supreme Court and cannot grant relief that would compel MCI or the Central Government to act outside those parameters.^[2]^[1]
1. Directions that allow a defective or incomplete application to be processed for a current academic year, contrary to the Regulations and schedule, are impermissible.^[1]^[2]

Authorities Relied Upon

The Supreme Court’s reasoning draws significantly on earlier decisions, including:

Royal Medical Trust (Registered) v. Union of India & Anr., 2015 10 SCC 19.^[4]^[2]
Educare Charitable Trust v. Union of India & Ors., JT 2013 (14) SC 381.^[2]

These precedents collectively stress that medical colleges must strictly comply with MCI Regulations and that incomplete or non‑compliant schemes are liable to be rejected without judicially created exceptions in individual cases.^[4]^[2]