The case regarding the fee hike at Dehradun's Shri Guru Ram Rai Institute of Medical and Health Sciences (SGRRIMHS) was heard yesterday, Wednesday, March 22 by the Uttarakhand High Court. As per students, the court said that it was not inclined to stay the order of the fee hike but it granted the petitioners of the case the liberty to deposit the difference in the fee they were required to pay in three instalments.
The case was heard under Article 226 of the Constitution which gives high courts the ability to issue certain orders and writs to any person or authority, including the government.
Getting back to what the court said on March 23, students were permitted to deposit the fee in three instalments. The first instalment is to be deposited in two weeks; the second within six months of the first instalment and the third within nine months of the first instalment. The court also disposed of any interim relief application.
For the final year students of SGRRIMHS Dehradun, the institute hiked the fee to Rs 37 lakh for those students who gained admission via the All India Quota (AIQ) and for those who came in through the state quota, it was hiked to Rs 26 lakh. Massive protests on campus had started against this. With the help of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), students filed a case with the Uttarakhand High Court.
SGRRIMHS students react
"We were hoping that the high court will help us but it seemed like the judge was not ready to listen and the judgement was pre-decided," shares a student, who wishes to remain anonymous.
Another student, who wishes to remain anonymous, says, "We still feel we were not heard properly. Everyone here is shocked that how, in the first hearing itself, the court has passed the decision. Also, time given to pay the first instalment (two weeks) is very less. No concession and no statement regarding the initiation of our internship is troublesome for us. Many of us are still incapable to pay this amount in such a small time frame."
