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Judgment
The petitioners are schools of Nursing, operating at different place in Jammu division. They claim to have permission/recognition from the Indian Nursing Council for imparting education in different nursing courses/programmes including ANM/GNM courses. It is submitted that the Jammu & Kashmir Nursing Council earlier issued notification for making admissions of the candidates to ANM/GNM nursing courses and in the said notification prescribed the eligibility criteria contrary to the one prescribed under the Indian Nursing Council Act. The matter became subject matter of adjudication in OWP No.577/2019 filed by the petitioners and other similar situated institutions. The said writ petition was disposed of by this Court as, in the meanwhile, the Indian Nursing Council Act, 1947 had come to be extended to the State of J&K. The petitioners and other institutions file another writ petition (WP(C) No.1520/2020), which was disposed of by this Court on 14.12.2020. Be that as it may, it is contended that after coming into force the J&K Reorganization Act, 2019, the Indian Nursing Council Act, 1947 came to be extended to the Union Territory of J&K and Union Territory of Ladakh and admissions to the Institutes like the petitioners were provided to be made in accordance with the Indian Nursing Council norms. Admissions to various government and private Nursing Institutes was, after the extension of Indian Nursing Council Act, were provided to be made by a centre like agency i.e. J&K Board of Professional Entrance Examination (JKBOPEE). JKBOPEE vide its notification dated 19.09.2020 invited online applications for appearing in the common entrance test for admission to the 12th based para medical courses for academic session 2020. Last date for submission of online application forms was 08.10.2020, which was later extended, firstly, to 13.10.2020 and secondly, to 17.10.2020. It is submitted that due to lesser time granted by the BOPEE and COVID-19 restrictions, very few candidates could respond to the admission notification issued by the BOPEE and accordingly, all eligible candidates, who had submitted their online applications were accommodated and admitted in the government institutes, generally the first preference of the candidates seeking admission to such courses. It is submitted that due to the aforesaid reason, no candidate was available with the BOPEE for admission to the petitioners-Institutes. They claim that that they have invested their hard earned money in establishing the Institutes and in case the students are not admitted, it would cause huge loss to the petitioners and, in that, they would be deprived of their only source of livelihood. The petitioners have also pleaded in support of the candidates, who are desirous of seeking admission in institutes of the petitioners but because they could not apply to JKBOPEE in time, they had been deprived of such chance.
It is in the backdrop of aforesaid fact situation narrated by the petitioners, the petitioners have sought indulgence of this Court to direct the respondents to allow the petitioners to make admission on their own, as per their sanctioned intake capacity, so that the left over students are accommodated and their institutes are also rendered viable.
The plea of the petitioners, noted above, has been resisted by Mr. Siddiqui, learned Senior Additional Advocate General, appearing for respondent Nos.1 to 3. He submits that as per SRO 505 of 2019 dated 20.08.2019, admission to all para medical courses including GNM/ANM courses is required to be made through JKBOPEE and, therefore, it is not in the province of the respondents Nos. 1 to 3 to permit the petitioners-Institutes to make admission of their own. To the similar fact is submission of Mr. F.A.Natnoo, AAG, representing respondent Nos. 4 & 5. He submits that the JKBOPEE had given ample opportunity to the candidates to submit online applications and whatever applications received by the BOPEE were considered and the eligible candidates, as per their preference and choice, were allotted the institutes and the admission process is over. He, however, opposed the prayer of the petitioners that BOPEE should issue fresh notification inviting online applications for admission to ANM/GNM courses so that the eligible candidates for admission are accommodated in the petitioners-Institutes.
Having heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record, I am of the view that no right is vested in the petitioners-Institutes to claim that the BOPEE should issue fresh notification inviting applications for admission to ANM/GNM courses only because the candidates, who had responded to the notifications of the BOPEE dated 19.09.2020 had not made a choice of the petitioners-Institutes and were thus, accommodated in the government institutes, as per their preference/choice. I am also not in agreement with the learned counsel for the petitioners that the BOPEE had not given adequate opportunity to the candidates to respond to the notification. The notification was issued on 19.09.2020 and last date for submission of online applications was fixed 08.10.2020, which was further extended to 17.10.2020. Almost a month's time was given to the candidates to apply online. Since applications were to be submitted online, therefore, the COVID-19 restrictions could not have caused any hindrance in submission of the application forms. The petitioners-Institutes, as is apparent from the facts brought on record, could not be accommodated because of poor response of the candidates seeking admission in ANM/GNM courses.
Having said that, I am of the view that the grievance of the petitioners can still be considered by respondent No.1 taking into consideration the following factors:-
i) That the petitioners-Institutes are recognized by the Indian Nursing Council and have necessary infrastructure to conduct the courses of ANM/GNM.
ii) That the petitioners-Institutes could not be accommodated by the BOPEE by making admissions to their Institutes due to poor response from the candidates seeking admission in GNM/ANM courses.
iii) That the admission process is yet not finalized and the last counseling is yet to take place.
iv) The classes of the candidates admitted to GNM/ANM courses have yet not commenced.
v) That under similar set of circumstances in the case of admission in the polytechnic, the Government in the Department of Skill Development showed indulgence and vide its communication No.DSD/Poly/36/2020 dated 28.10.2020 addressed to the Director, Skill Development Department, permitted the Polytechnic Institutes to make admission at their own level against the left over seats for the session 2020-21 after the first counseling of the applicants is over providing further that there shall be no change in eligibility criteria presently in-vogue.
In view of the aforesaid, though, finding no merit in the pleas of the petitioners and acting purely on equitable considerations, these writ petitions are disposed of by directing respondent No.1 to consider the grievance of the petitioners, as projected in these petitions, in light of factors enumerated herein above and pass appropriate orders within a period of two weeks from the date a copy of this judgment is served upon him. Respondent No.1 shall do well to take a decision in the matter on the analogy of the department of Skill Development, which has, in the similar set of circumstances, permitted the Polytechnic Institutes to admit the students at their own level subject to the candidates meeting the eligibility criteria. This would not only save the Institutes from being rendered unviable but it would also provide an opportunity to the candidates to acquire qualification of ANM/GNM. It is, however, left to the wisdom and good conscience of the respondents to act in the matter.