The Karnataka High Court has directed several private dental colleges in the state to admit the 27 selected for post graduation dental courses for 2005-’06 under the government quota.

Justice BS Patil passed the order on to petitions challenging the refusal by five colleges to admit students selected under the government quota for post- graduate dental courses.

In the first petition, Sankeshwari Roopali of Hubli, Sanjeev BR and 21 others all Bachelor of Dental Sciences (BDS) students said they were allotted seats in four different dental colleges on April 25, 2005 by the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS). They said that the following colleges, namely KLE Institute of Dental Sciences, Davangere, Bapuji Dental College and Hospital, Davangere and RV Dental College had refused to admit students stating that their fee fixation was yet to be completed and they could not be admitted till then.

The petitioners said they had been given provisional allotment letters for post-graduate dental seats by the RGUHS.

When they reported to the colleges, they were asked to come on May 3. On that day they were told that they would not be admitted as the fee fixation issue was before the Supreme Court. They asked the Court to direct the colleges to admit them to the post-graduate courses.

If this request could not be granted, they also sought a direction to the state to allot seats in any other dental college.

Justice Patil directed the colleges to act in terms of the allotment letter by RGUHS and said the admissions of the petitioners.

In another petition, Riyaj Ahmad Mantur and three others which are all BDS students, said that Yenopaya Dental College of Mangalore had refused to admit the students to post graduate dental courses.

The petitioners said that the college had issued endorsements on April 28 and April 30, 2005 refusing to admit them to the courses. They challenged the legality and validity of the endorsements and urged the Court to direct the college to admit them.

They said that the college could not refuse admission after they wrote an entrance examination and were given provisional allotment letter by RGUHS. They said any further delay would jeopardize their career. Justice Patil directed the college to admit students.