We want seats, not fees: Maratha Students demand PG medical quota

After Supreme Court upheld the order of Bombay High Court for not providing reservations to Maratha community in higher medical studies, the students from the community continue with their protests at Azad Maidan in Mumbai.

As this happened, the students who took admission through Maratha quota will have to move and take admission from open category which will increase their fee. However, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that the fee difference will be paid by the state government. 

Despite the assurances given by the Chief Minister to pay the fee difference, the students belonging to the Maratha community remain disappointed. The fee difference of the students from the Maratha community will be covered under the Annasaheb Patil Economic Development Corporation.

These students say that the government has increased seats under the open category, even then we will not get admission in the good colleges. We do not want admission in private colleges. The assurance of the government filling the fees does not even matter, as we do not have the fees to sit.

The government has increased the seats in the open category and despite that, we won’t get admission in a decent college. We don’t want to study at a private college. The assurance given by the government doesn’t matter because we want seats and not fees," the protesting students asserted.

What is the matter?

The online examination process for the admission in the post-graduate medical course was initiated in October 2018. During the process of selecting students, the Maharashtra government passed the Maratha reservation bill in the state assembly. 

Earlier, some students had protested against the state government’s decision to implement Maratha quota after the online examination process for the same was started. 

Bombay HC order

Earlier, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay HC carried out a decision declaring the provisions of Maratha reservation as inapplicable for the admissions to post-graduate medical studies. After which, the Maharashtra government filed a special leave petition (SLP) challenging the HC’s order. However, the apex court rejected the plea.