Telangana High Court tells KNRUHS to consider 32 students as ‘local’ candidates in interim order
The petitioner students have challenged a notification by the Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences that mandates a four-year study or residency period in Telangana to be considered a 'local' candidate for admission into undergraduate courses.
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The court observed that interim directions were issued for the Telangana Government and the KNRUHS to permit the students to register for admission as local candidates. (File photo)In an interim order, the Telangana High Court directed the Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences (KNRUHS) and the Government on Wednesday to consider a group of 32 students as “local” candidates for registration in the admission process pending the adjudication of a petition.
A bench of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice P Sam Koshy was hearing a batch of petitions that challenged the notification and dated July 15, 2025, issued by the KNRUHS, mandating a four-year study or residency period in Telangana to be considered a “local” candidate status for admission into undergraduate courses.
The petitioners contended that the registration process would end by July 25, and that they might not be able to participate in the counselling process unless the university treated them as “local” candidates.
The constitutional and legal validity of Rule 3 (a) of the Telangana Medical and Dental Colleges Admission (Admission into MBBS and BDS courses) Rules 2017, as amended vide government order Ms 33 of the health, medical, and family welfare department, dated July 19, 2024, has been challenged as being violative of Articles 14, 19, and 21 of Constitution of India.
Senior counsel B Mayur Reddy and advocate Alluri Divakar Reddy, who represented 28 of the 32 petitioners, relied on division bench orders of 2023 and 2024 to state that the Rule 3 (a) was read down by the division bench last year with an interpretation that it shall also include permanent residents of Telangana, without applying the four-year condition.
The high court had then granted liberty to the Government to frame specific guidelines for determining domicile or permanent residence. The court further held that the university shall consider cases of students who claim to be eligible under the aforesaid guidelines.
The petitioners alleged that the directives remained unfulfilled even a year later. Instead, the state preferred an appeal against the 2023 and 2024 orders last year and received an interim stay on the operation of the court order. However, the stay was granted only after the state admitted before the Supreme Court that the petitioners would be considered as “local” candidates for counselling.
They argued that the 2025 prospectus continues to rely on the old criteria and students who are otherwise permanent residents or domiciles of Telangana were being unfairly excluded due to the rigid interpretation of Rule 3(a).
On Wednesday, the court observed that interim directions were issued on Friday for the Telangana Government and the KNRUHS to permit the students to register for admission as local candidates.
The bench extended the same relief to present petitioners and made clear that the same would be subject to the final outcome of the matter.
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