New Delhi: The Supreme Court has invalidated a mid-process alteration made by the Punjab government in the criteria for sports quota admissions to MBBS and BDS courses for the 2024 academic session, holding that such a change undermined constitutional guarantees of fairness and transparency.
A bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kumar, along with Justice Alok Aradhe, ruled that expanding the scope of sports achievements eligible for consideration after the admission process had already begun was impermissible in law. The court said that admission rules, much like recruitment norms, must be clearly laid down in advance and cannot be reshaped midway to accommodate select interests.
Emphasising the importance of clarity at the outset, the bench observed that leaving policies vague or flexible opens the door to arbitrariness and favouritism, which runs contrary to the principles enshrined under Article 14 of the Constitution.
The verdict came while allowing appeals against an earlier decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had declined to interfere with the revised criteria. The dispute centred on the state’s decision to consider sports achievements from Classes IX and X, in addition to Classes XI and XII, for admissions under the one per cent sports quota.
While declaring the 2024 policy shift unlawful, the Supreme Court limited the scope of relief to the appellants before it, citing the need to avoid disruption of admissions already completed. It ordered that appellants Divjot Sekhon and Shubhkarman Singh be accommodated in government medical colleges, with two other candidates being shifted to private institutions. The court clarified that academic progress and fees already paid by all students would remain undisturbed.
The bench also noted that a similar policy had continued into the 2025 admission cycle, which had already concluded. Since potentially affected candidates were not parties to the case, the court refrained from issuing broader directions and granted liberty to the appellants to approach the High Court again through a properly constituted petition.
At the same time, the Supreme Court urged the Punjab government to frame a clear, comprehensive and well-reasoned admission policy for future sessions, ensuring it is finalised before the process begins and remains insulated from extraneous influence.
The controversy arose from the prospectus issued by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences on August 9, 2024, which initially restricted sports credit to achievements during Classes XI and XII. However, on the final day for applications, the university circulated an email allowing candidates to submit achievements from any academic year. This was later formalised through an addendum, resulting in a revised merit list that altered rankings under the sports quota.
The court noted that an earlier expansion of the eligibility window in 2023 was a one-time measure linked to disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and could not be cited as justification for a similar change in 2024. It also flagged concerns over a representation that prompted the policy shift, pointing out that the person who made it failed to disclose a direct personal interest in the outcome.
Drawing attention to inconsistencies, the bench observed that for other medical and allied health courses in the same year, as well as for postgraduate medical admissions, sports achievements were assessed on far narrower and clearly defined criteria.
Reiterating that admission norms must be fixed and transparent from the start, the Supreme Court concluded that the state could not retrospectively alter rules once the process was underway, especially in a manner that affected merit and fairness.
