Days after a section of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Hindu groups celebrated the National Medical Commission’s (NMC) decision to withdraw permission to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME) in Reasi, Jammu, to run an MBBS course for 2025-26 academic session, a doctors' body has called on the President to intervene and get this decision revoked.
Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) is an affiliate of the global International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) and a non-profit medical organisation in India dedicated to nuclear disarmament, regional peace, and health advocacy. IDPD president Dr Arun Mitra told THE WEEK, "The real challenge for the country in the times ahead is that communalisation is entering the education system and dividing society along religious lines. This trend has now reached medical institutions, which is deeply troubling. These are not minority institutions, and therefore there is no justification for demanding additional seats."
He added, "Had there been genuine concerns, they should have been raised earlier. This year’s agitation is not about education; it is driven by political motives. If such issues are allowed to penetrate medical education, it will become a serious challenge for the country, one that all concerned citizens must collectively resist."
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The medical college at Katra was granted permission last year to admit 50 students, and admissions were carried out. Out of these 50 students, 42 students admitted belonged to the Muslim community. According to the IDPD's press note, "This fact alone, appears to have triggered a politically motivated agitation by the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, who have openly argued that since the college is run by the Mata Vaishno Devi Trust, admissions should be restricted to students from the Hindu community."
It further states, "IDPD categorically states that this argument is unconstitutional, discriminatory, and legally untenable. The medical college does not enjoy minority status, and therefore any agitation or demand based on religious exclusion is illegal and violative of the Constitution of India. Admissions based on merit, irrespective of religion, caste, or creed, are the cornerstone of a democratic and secular education system."
