The Karnataka High Court directed the Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA) to register the petitioners- Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders for CET-2021 as per the notification dated June 14, 2021 and permit them to take examinations for engineering seats.

Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum passed the order after hearing the petition filed by Alekhya Ponnekanti and several others questioning the notification dated March 4, 2021, issued by the central government stating that they are not eligible for any seats reserved exclusively for Indian citizens. They have also challenged another notification issued by KEA dated June 14, 2021, to bar them from getting admission to government seats in government or private colleges.

The judge said that the counsel of petitioners Ajoy Kumar Patil has placed on record that there are about 200 institutions and around 55,000 seats would be available only through CET and that would also include institutional seats. In this background, 'I am of the opinion that if the petitioners are not registered with the KEA, they would be put to irreparable loss and it may even take away all their future prospects in their career. Therefore, I am of the view that a directon needs to be issued pending consideration of all these relevant points for consideration raised by the rival parties', the judge noted.

The petitioners contended that the division bench of the high court on December 9, 2020 had held that Rule 5 of the Karnataka Selection of Candidates for the Admission to Government Seats in Professional Educational Institutions Rules, 2006 to the extent it prescribes Indian Citizenship needs to be interpret so as to include OCI card holders within the definition of -"Citizen-" as contemplated under Section 4 of the Citizenship Act.