SC scrapped 100 per cent Quota in Non-minority Educational Institutions

The Supreme Court of India on 12 May 2011 ruled that non-minority educational institutions have no right to admit students of their choice and struck down 100% reservation for children of armed forces in the Army College of Medical Sciences (ACMS) in Delhi Cantonment.

 
 A Bench comprising Justice B Sudershan Reddy and Justice S S Nijjar stated that if the non-minority educational institutions were given such a right it would be detrimental to the true nature of education.

The SC allowed petitions filed by the Indian Medical Association and students who challenged the Delhi government approved admission process of ACMS which admitted only wards of serving and former Army personnel who have taken common entrance test for NCT Delhi.

 ACMS is a private institution started in 2008 and managed by the Army Welfare Education Society, which was allotted 25 acres of land by ministry of defence. Though a private institute, ACMS was allowed to use facilities of the Army Hospital at Delhi for clinical training of students.
The bench mentioned that denial of access to higher education to socially and educationally backward classes, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, would potentially be dangerous to the nation.

The bench  highlighted that the 14 August 2008, notification of the Delhi government that permitted ACMS to allocate 100% seats in the said college towards Army personnel in accordance with the policy followed by the Indian Army is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court set aside this particular notification. The court directed ACMS to admit petitioner students into first year of MBBS course.