Telangana HC Halts 85% Local Quota In PG Medical Seats
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin noted that, prima facie, the amendment appeared to change the admission criteria after the process had begun.
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has stalled the state government’s decision to introduce 85 per cent local reservation within the management quota sub-category-1 seats for postgraduate medical admissions for 2025-26.
The government through GO No.s 200 and 201 dated 03.11.2025, had amended the Telangana Un-aided, Non-Minority and Minority Professional Institutions (Regulation of Admissions into Post Graduate Medical and Dental Professional Courses) Rules, 2017 by introducing a division within the management quota sub-category-1 seats and allocating 85 per cent to local candidates of Telangana and 15 per cent for the all-India quota seats.
Dr. Swaroop and several non-local aspirants approached the court challenging the decision. Senior counsel Gandra Mohan Rao representing the petitioners contended that the government introduced the amendment after commencement of the admission process for 2025-26. The eligibility criteria had no reservations in the management quota any time earlier.
According to the petitioners, the reservation was impermissible in view of the Supreme Court decisions in ‘P.A. Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra’ and ‘Dr Tanvi Behl v. Shrey Goel’. In the latter, the Supreme Court held that residence-based reservation can be granted in the MBBS course at the undergraduate level but not at the PG level which required higher levels of merit and competency. Senior counsel Mohan Rao submitted that the impugned amendment amounted to changing the rules of the game after it had begun.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin noted that, prima facie, the amendment appeared to change the admission criteria after the process had begun. Without examining the other grounds raised, the court directed that the impugned amendment would not apply to the ongoing PG medical admission process for 2025–26. The court granted the government four weeks to file counter affidavits, followed by two weeks for the petitioners to file their replies and adjourned the matter to January 19 next.