Kolkata, December 18, 2004
Sixty nine West Bengal-based medical students are cotinuing with their
hunger strike on the fifth day after the Supreme Court's order to oust
students who were given admission in NRI quota for those who secured
higher marks in the merit list.
The Supreme Court's order has come as a nightmare for their career.
The 69 students were granted admission in two medical colleges of Bengal,
SSKM Medical College and Midnapore Medical College, in NRI quota recently
introduced by the State Government.
Once the students were granted admission in NRI quota, those students
who secured higher rank in the merit list went to the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court directed the West Bengal Government to oust these 69 students
and give admission to those students who secured higher ranks in the
merit list.
The state Government immediately filed another case in the apex court
but it was quashed and all of a sudden these students were dumped.
"We want humanitarian justice. Our protest is humanitarian justice
for all the students whose humanitarian right ... right to education
has been taken away by the concerned authorities," Soumyadeep Chatterjee,
a student said. "We have approached the Supreme Court and we have
approached the President of India as well because education is a fundamental
right of the citizens of India and our right to education has presently
been taken away from us. We have been thrown away from our colleges
and we have been expelled, which means that our fundamental right has
been tampered with," said Gargi, another student.
As all doors are closed, parents of the students are again filing petition
in the Supreme Court and students themselves have appealed to the President
of India as the State Government has nothing to do after the latest
order.
Three students were hospitalized as they developed abdominal pain.
A medical board is keeping an eye on the health of the students on strike.
Meanwhile state government, which accepted ethical responsibility for
the ousted students, are trying to reach to an amicable solution. (ANI)