Grant domicile certificate to aspiring medical student: Gujarat High Court to Rajkot district administration

Considering the August 13 deadline to apply for the medical admission in the state quota, Justice Sangeeta Vishen directed the Rajkot authorities “to act upon the petitioner’s application and issue the requisite domicile certificate before August 13, 2024, without any further delay.”

Ruling in petitioner’s favour, the court said, “…the concept of one’s domicile has a definite implication and is directly linked with the place where a person lives or has his home. It is a place where a person has his actual residence, inhabitancy or commorancy. It has been held and observed that  residence need not be continuous but it must be indefinite not purely fleeting…”

“…merely because student shifts outside Gujarat for few years to pursue studies as a boarding student and returns to the state of his permanent residence and also pursues further education of Standard-IX to XII, then in such circumstances the period for which he remained outside Gujarat cannot be excluded while computing minimum continuous stay of ten years in Gujarat.”

The court considered the “voluminous documents” that backed the arguments of Ramoliya’s counsel that it was only in 2004 that the petitioner’s father shifted to Karnataka and the petitioner was born there. The family had shifted to Gujarat in 2019 and Ramoliya completed her studies from Class VIII to XII in Gujarat. The court also considered records of birth of Ramoliya’s grandparents, parents as well as school leaving certificates of her parents, all belonging to Rajkot district, along with details of the immovable properties owned by the family and her parents in the district. Ramoliya’s counsel also placed on record that the petitioner’s Aadhaar card was also issued in Gujarat with the permanent address stated as Rajkot.

The court said, “Intention is writ large of the parents of the petitioner to settle in Gujarat. Also, voluminous documents, placed on record, clearly suggest that the root of the petitioner and her family continued to be in Gujarat…”