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Bombay High Court allows EWS student who selected wrong seat in physio admissions to appear in next CET round

The petitioner sent an email to the state CET Cell on November 7 regarding the mixup but did not receive a response.

2 min readPuneDec 18, 2025 08:50 PM IST

On December 12, the Bombay High Court granted permission to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to fell and transplant up to 45,000 mangrove trees for the proposed 26.5-km Mumbai Coastal Road Project. (Express Photo)

The petitioner’s father operates a tyre pressure machine at a petrol pump and she herself worked as a mehandi artist to financially support her education (Express Photo)

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted permission to a physiotherapy candidate from Pune, belonging to the Economically Weaker Section (EWS), to appear for the next stray vacancy admission round in the ongoing CET admission cycle after she admitted to mistakenly entering the wrong choice in the online preference form.

The petitioner’s father operates a tyre pressure machine at a petrol pump and she herself worked as a mehandi artist to financially support her education. She submitted in court that as she was lacking the operational skills to fill the online form so she had taken help from a local cyber cafe. She desired to enter code number 6104 for a government college, however code number 6174 was mistakenly submitted. This granted her admission to a private college in Karad, Satara, and she was not able to accept the admission due to the high fees.

The petitioner submitted in court that according to rules of admission provided in the CET information booklet, a candidate who has been assigned a seat of their choice and refuses to confirm that admission, is ineligible for further CET admission rounds. Such a student can only appear in institute level stray rounds which would again require payment of fees and that student will also be ineligible for subsidized fees in government colleges. The petitioner sent an email to the state CET Cell on November 7 regarding the mixup but did not receive a response.

Advocate Pooja Thorat, who represented the petitioner, in a statement said, “Her father runs a tyre puncture shop at a petrol pump and she has supported her education by being a mehndi artist so far. She could not afford qualified counsellor who guide students to fill registration and admission process forms, she took help of internet Cafe to fill up her admission form.”

The bench of Justices Ravindra Ghughe and Ashwin Bhobe said, “Considering the peculiar facts of this case…we, therefore, direct the State CET Cell to grant special permission to the petitioner to submit an application and register her for the said round (Online Stray Vacancy Round-2) by exercising her choice by filing the preference form.”

Soham Shah

Soham Shah is a Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Pune. A journalism graduate with a background in fact-checking, he brings a meticulous and research-oriented approach to his current reporting. Professional Background Role: Correspondent coverig education and city affairs in Pune. Specialization: His primary beat is education, but he also maintains a strong focus on civic issues, public health, human rights, and state politics. Key Strength: Soham focuses on data-driven reporting on school and college education, government reports, and public infrastructure. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) His late 2025 work highlights a transition from education-centric reporting to hard-hitting investigative and human-rights stories: 1. Investigations & Governance "Express Impact: Mother's name now a must to download birth certificate from PMC site" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on a significant policy change by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) following his earlier reports on gender inclusivity in administrative documents. "44-Acre Mahar Land Controversy: In June, Pune official sought land eviction at Pawar son firm behest" (Nov 9, 2025): An investigative piece on real estate irregularities involving high-profile political families. 2. Education & Campus Life Faculty crisis at SPPU hits research, admin work: 62% of govt-sanctioned posts vacant, over 75% in many depts (Sept 12, 2025): An investigative piece on professor vacancies at Savitribai Phule Pune University. "Maharashtra’s controversial third language policy: Why National Curriculum Framework recommends a third language from Class 6" (July 2): This detailed piece unpacks reasons behind why the state's move to introduce a third language from class 1 was controversial. "Decline in number of schools, teachers in Maharashtra but student enrolment up: Report" (Jan 2025): Analyzing discrepancies in the state's education data despite rising student numbers. 3. Human Rights & Social Issues "Aanchal Mamidawar was brave after her family killed her boyfriend" (Dec 17, 2025): A deeply personal and hard-hitting opinion piece/column on the "crime of love" and honor killings in modern India. "'People disrespect the disabled': Meet the man who has become face of racist attacks on Indians" (Nov 29, 2025): A profile of a Pune resident with severe physical deformities who became the target of global online harassment, highlighting issues of disability and cyber-bullying. Signature Style Soham is known for his civil-liberties lens. His reporting frequently champions the rights of the marginalized—whether it's students fighting for campus democracy, victims of regressive social practices, or residents struggling with crumbling urban infrastructure (as seen in his "Breathless Pune" contributions). He is adept at linking hyper-local Pune issues to larger national conversations about law and liberty. X (Twitter): @SohamShah07 ... Read More

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