Holding

The Supreme Court held that because the respondent society failed to satisfy the mandatory pre‑conditions, the scheme could not be deemed approved under Section 10A(5) of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956.

Summary

The All India Children Care and Educational Development Society applied to the Central Government under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 for permission to establish a medical college, submitting a scheme that required ownership of a 300‑bed teaching hospital and adequate staff and clinical facilities. The Allahabad High Court held that the scheme was deemed approved under Section 10A(5) of the Act and set aside the Medical Council of India's interference. On appeal, the Supreme Court examined the statutory conditions and found that the society had not fulfilled the mandatory pre‑conditions, notably the ownership and management of a 300‑bed hospital, nor had it allowed the Council to inspect the premises. Consequently, the Court held that the scheme could not attract deemed approval and that the High Court’s order was erroneous. The appeals were allowed, the writ petitions dismissed, and no costs were awarded.

Issues considered

Whether the scheme submitted by the respondent society qualifies for deemed approval under Section 10A(5) of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 despite non‑fulfilment of statutory pre‑conditions.
Whether the High Court erred in holding that a mere proposal for a medical college amounted to a scheme attracting deemed approval.

Legislation cited

Indian Medical Council Act, 1956s. 10A(1), s. 10A(2), s. 10A(3), s. 10A(4), s. 10A(5), s. 10A(7)

Subjects

Indian Medical Council Actdeemed approvalmedical college establishmentstatutory pre‑conditionsinspectionSupreme Courtwrit petitionCentral Government permission

Judgment

UNION OF INDIA AND ORS. A
v.
ALL INDIA CHILDREN CARE AND EDUCATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT SOCIETY, AZAMGARH AND ANR.

MARCH 11, 2002
B
[S. RAJENDRA BABU AND RUMA PAL, JJ.)

Education:

Indian Medical Council Act, 1956-Section JOA-Establishment of new C
Medical College-Permission /or-Fulfilment of conditions to seek benefit of
deemed approval by Central Government-Applicant-society submitted scheme
under the Act to the Central Government for establishment ofMedical Col/ege-
Also submitted application under the Act-However, failed to fulfil the
requirement of owning and managing 300 bedded hospital, and also sufficient D
staff and clinical facilities-Held, since there was failure of statutory and
mandatory pre-conditions required under the Act there is no deemed approval
by the Central Government.
•
Respondent-society submitted a scheme under the Indian Medical
Council Act, 1956 regarding establishment of Medical College to Central E
Government for approval. Respondent-society then filed a writ petition
seeking direction of non-interference of Medical Council of India with the
peaceful establishment and running of a Medical College. High Court holding
that there is a deemed approval of the scheme submitted by the respondent
by the Central Government, allowed the petition. Hence the present appeal
F
Allowing the appea~ the Court

HELD: 1.1. It is evident from a perusal of the scheme contained in
Section IOA of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 that an application
submitted for establishment of a Medicai College in full compliance with the
statutory and mandatory pre-conditions laid down under Section JOA of the G
Act alone would be entitled to the benefit of deemed approval by the Central
Government. (366-F]

1.2. In the instant case, respondent-society had to fulfil the requirement
of owning and managing 300 beds hospital The respondent has not till date
· fulfilled all the requirements, which it is under an obligation to fulfil on the H
363
364 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2002) 2 S.C.R.

A date of making of the application under Section IOA(2) of the Act to the
Central Government. It even did not have sufficient staff and enough clinical
)-
facilities. The High Court lost sight of the fact that there was mere proposal
from the respondent-society for grant of permission for establishing a new
medical college. At !hat stage, examination of the claims for approval had
not been made and the Central Government had asked for proof relating to
B the ownership and management of 300 bedded hospitals as also the required
land and there was no response to that by the respondents.
[366-F-G-H; 367-A-B]

1.3. Considering the fact that large number of students will be affected,
C this Court ordered inspection by the Medical Council. Even thereafter,
inspection was not allowed by the respondent-society on one specious reason
or the other. In .the circumstances, when the respondent society has not fulfilled
the requirements under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 nor has allowed
the appellants the conduct the appropriate inspection, the order passed by
the High Court is set aside. [367-D; 368-A-B]
D CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 3237 of
1999.
From the Judgment and Order dated 11.11.98 of the Allahabad High
Court in C.W.P. No. 26336 of the 1998.

E WITH

C.A. No. 1992 of 2002.

Altaf Ahmed, Additional Solicitor General, Dinesh Dwiyedi, N.N.
Goswami, Tapas Ray, P.P. Rao, Subodh Markandeya, Rajiv Nanda, Y.P.
F Mahajan, Ms. Varuna Bhandari, D.S. Mabra, Raj Kumar Gupta, Sheo Kumar
Gupta, A.N. Bardiyar, Maninder Singh, A. Mariarnutham, Ms. Pratibha
M. Singh, Ms. Kavita Wadia, Ms. Chitra Markandaya, Alok Gupta and Ms.
Feroze Bano for the appearing parties. ·
'
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
G RAJENDRA BABU, J. Leave granted in SLP (C) No. 1387611999.
This appeal is also heard along with Civil Appeal No; 3237/1999. ...,.,

In Civil Appeal No. 3237/1999 the challenge is to an order made by the
High Court in a writ petition filed assailing two orders dated 8.5.1998 and
22.5.1998 and seeking for a
direction not to interfere with the peaceful
H establishment and running of a medical college at Azamgarh by the respondent
U.0.1 v. ALL INDIA CHILD. CARE AND EDUCATIONAL DEVELOP. SOCIETY{RAJENDRA BABU, J.J365

society. A
The High Court took the view that there is a deemed approval of the
Central Government in respect of the scheme submitted by the respondent
society in terms of Section IOA(5) of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956
[hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'] and on that basis the orders dated 8.5.1998
and 22.5.1998 stood quashed. The appellants contended before the High B
Court that the respondent society does not fulfil the statutory.pre-conditions
required to be fulfilled before making an application to attract the deeming
approval of Section IOA(5) of the Act. They submittea that a scheme of
making of an application purported to be under Section IOA(2)ofthe Act by
itself is not a proper and valid application because it has got to fulfil all the C
conditions requisite for the same. According to the appellants, there is no
complete application at the relevant time and such an application came only
in the year 1997 and that a mere proposal to establish a medical college
would not amount to making of a scheme and that on 9.1.1998, the Executive
Committee of the Medical Council of India [hereinafter referred to as 'the
Council'] had recommended issuance of a letter of intent in favour of D
respondent society to start a medical college at Azamgarh for 50 admissions
annually. Thereafter, several inspections Wok place but there was no fulfilment
of the requirements at all.

Under Section lOA(l) of the Act, it is provided that no person shall E
establish a medical college or shall open a new or higher course of study or
training or increase its admission capacity in any course of study or training
except with the previous permission of the Central Government obtained in
accordance with the provisions of the section. Clause (a) of sub-section (2)
~ of Section l OA of the Act provides that every person or medical college
shall, for the purpose of obtaining permission under sub-section (l), submit F
to the Central Government a scheme in accordance with the provisions of
cla4se (b) and the Central Government shall refer the scheme to the Council
for its recommendations. Under clause (b) of Section IOA(2) it is laid down
that the scheme refe1red to in clause (a) shall be in such form and contain
such particulars and be preferred in such manner and be accompanied with G
such fee as may be prescribed. In terms of Section I OA(3) of the Act, the
Council, on receipt of a scheme under sub-section (2), may obtain suth other
particulars as may be considered necessary by it from the person or the
medical college concerned and thereafter it may, if the scheme is defective
and does not contain any necessary particulars, give a reasonable opportunity
to the person or the medical college concerned for making a written H
366 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2002] 2 S.C.R.

A representation and it shall be open to such person or medical college to
rectify the defects, if any, specified by the Council and may also consider the
scheme, having regard to the factors referred to in sub-section (7) and submit
the scheme together with its recommendations thereon to the Central
Government. Section IOA(4) of the Act provides that the Central Government
may, after considering the scheme and the recommendations of the Council
B and after <?btaining where necessary such other particulars as may be considered
necessary by it from the person or college concerned, and having regard to
the factors referred to in sub-section (7), either approve, with such conditions,
if any, as it may consider necessary, or disapprove the scheme and any, such
· approval shall be a permission under sub-section (1). However, in the first
C proviso to sub-section (4) it is prescribed that no scheme shall be disapproved
by the Central Government except after giving the person or college concerned
reasonable opportunity of being heard and in the second proviso it is laid
down that even if a scheme has been disapproved, the same shall not prevent
any person or medical college whose scheme has been disapproved to submit
a fresh scheme and the provisions of the section shall apply to such scheme
D as if such scheme has been submitted afresh. Section 10A(5) provides that if
within a period of one year from the date of submission of the scheme to the
Central Government under sub-section (2), no order passed by the Central
Government has been communicated to the person or college submitting the
scheme, such scheme shall be deemed to have been approved by the Central
E Government in the form in which it had been submitted and accordingly the
permission of the Central Government required under sub-section (1) shall
also be deemed to have been granted. However, in computing the time-limit
specified in sub-section (5) the time taken by the person or college concerned
submitting the scheme, in furnishing the particulars called for by the Council
shall be excluded.
F
From a perusal of the scheme contained in Section 1OA of the Act, it
is evident that an application submitted in full compliance with the statutory
and mandatory pre-conditions laid down under Section l OA of the Act alone
would be entitled t0 the benefit of de·eming approval. In the present case,
G respondent society had to fulfil the requirement of owning and managing 300
beds hospital and details whereof shall be incorporated in the application as
made under Section IOA(2) of the Act to the Central Government. The
respondent has not till date fulfilled all the requirements, which it is under
an obligation to fulfil on the date of making of the application. On the date
of submission of the application, the respondent society did not own and
H possess a hospital of 300 beds apart from not having sufficient staff and
I
U.0.1. "·ALL INDIA CHILD. CARE AND EDUCATIONAL DEVELOP. SOCIETY (RAJENDRA BABU, J.] 367

~nough clinical facilities. The High Court lost sight of the fact that there was A
mere proposal from the respondent society for grant of permission for
establishing a new medical college. At that stage, examination of the claims
for approval had not been made and the Central Government had asked for
proof relating to the ownership and management of 300 bedded hospital as
also the required land and, therefore, a letter was sent on 4.10.1996 by th~ B
Central Government to the respondent society to submit the proof in this
regard and there was no response to that letter till 17 .2.1997, when the
Central Government received a reply from the respondent society indicating
that the Department of Health, State of U.P. was willing to create an
arrangement by providing the District Hospital, Azamgarh for the purpose of
teaching hospital on certain conditions. But the norms of the Council was C
that the teaching hospital should be owned and managed by the applicant. On
21.3.1997, the Central Government was informed that the arrangement sought
to be made between the Department of Health, State ofU.P. and the respondent
society was revoked. Thus when there was no fulfilment of the condition
required under the Act and that aspect not having been examined by the High
Court, we cannot sustain the order made by the High Court. However, at this D
stage, it is pertinent to state that considering the fact that a large number
students will be affected, this Court by an order made on 4.5.2001 stated as
follows:

"Having perused the statements furnished by the College and the E
Medical Council of India and also the letter of the Director General
of the Medical College of the State of U.P. in regard to compliance
of requirements of I 993 Regulations, we are of the opinion that it
would be just and appropriate to permit the College to start after
making due arrangements, imparting institution to the existing students
who have passed I st year of the MBBS course within two weeks F
from today. The College shall.be inspected by the Medical Council
of India with reference to the deficiencies pointed out as per the
standards fixed in 1993 Regulations in the first week of August 2001
after due notice to the applicant-respondent College. The report
whereof shall be submitted in this Court in the 2nd week of August G
200 I by the MCI. Further orders on the I.As will be passed on the
basis of inspection report of MCI. However, we make it clear that if
the college does not come up to the standards fixed under 1993
Regulations, we will be constrained to consider the question of ordering
closure of the College and at that stage appropriate order for the
absorption of the students in other colleges of Uttar Pradesh will be H
368 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2002] 2 S.C.R.

·A passed, if considered necessary. We also make it clear that this
arrangement is without prejudice to the contentions raised by the
Medical Council of India in the appeal."

Even thereafter, it is submitted that inspection was not allowed by the
respondent society on one specious reason or the other. In the circumstances,
B when the respondent society has not fulfilled the requirements nor has allowed
the appellants to conduct the appropriate inspection, we have no option but
to set aside the order made by the High Court and dismiss the writ petitions
filed by the respondent society.

Both appeals shall stand allowed accordingly. No costs.
c . ._,,, I

N.J. Appeals allowed.