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1. This hearing has been done through video conferencing.

2. The present petition has been preferred by eight doctors who have qualified their MBBS courses and also obtained diplomas from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Mumbai (hereinafter, 'CPS Mumbai').

3. The Petitioners wish to appear for the DNB-PDCET, 2021 which is conducted by the National Board of Examinations (hereinafter, 'NBE'). The challenge in this case is to Clause 4.8 of the Information Bulletin for the said examination, published by NBE online on 25th March, 2021, by which the NBE has barred diploma holders from CPS Mumbai from applying for the DNB-PDCET.

7. It is submitted on behalf of the Petitioners that even in previous years, similarly situated candidates from CPS have been permitted to appear for the DNB-PDCET examination. Reliance is placed upon the judgment of the ld. Division Bench of the Bombay High Court in W.P.(C) 5343/2018 titled Anita Kishanrao Videkar v. UOI & Ors. wherein the Bombay High Court permitted students, who had taken their admission prior to being held to be ineligible, to appear in the examination.

8. The stand of the NBE in its affidavit is that CPS Mumbai is not a recognised Indian University under clause 4.1 of the Information Bulletin. It is further submitted that even in the final examinations held for DNB/DrNB in December, 2020, such a clause holding that candidates from CPS Mumbai would be ineligible was published. It is further stated in the affidavit filed by the NBE that the NBE has repeatedly sought clarifications from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (hereinafter, 'MoHFW') as to whether the CPS Mumbai diploma qualifications are considered to be equivalent or not with their counterpart PG Medical Diploma qualifications of NMC/MCI. However, the MoHFW is yet to respond. The affidavit also places on record the correspondence entered into between the NBE and other authorities, including the MoHFW and the National Medical Commission.

9. The submission of Mr. Kirtiman Singh, ld. counsel for the NBE, is that as per Clause 4.1 of the Information Bulletin, unless and until the diploma qualifications granted by CPS Mumbai are held to be equivalent with their counterpart PG Medical Diploma qualifications of NMC/MCI, the Petitioners cannot be permitted to appear in the examination.

10. On behalf of the National Medical Commission, the stand taken in letter dated 20th November, 2020, candidates who have qualified from CPS Mumbai can register for practise, however, there is no notification in respect of their equivalence with their counterpart PG Medical Diploma qualifications of NMC/MCI. On behalf of CPS Mumbai, it is submitted by Mr. Verma, ld. counsel that the CPS Mumbai is a recognised institution. Government nominees are part of the Board of CPS Mumbai. The qualifications issued by CPS Mumbai are duly recognised and are equivalent to the counterpart qualifications recognised by NMC/MCI.

11. After hearing ld. counsels for the parties and perusing the record, especially the affidavit of the NBE, it is clear that until 25th March, 2021, when the Information Bulletin was published, diploma holders from CPS Mumbai appeared in the DNB-PDCET examination conducted in the previous years. There appears to be some doubt raised on behalf of the NBE as to whether the diploma qualifications awarded by CPS Mumbai are equivalent or not with their counterpart PG Medical Diploma qualifications of NMC/MCI. According to Mr. Kirtiman Singh, ld. counsel, several letters have been written by the NBE to the MoHFW, as also to the National Medical Commission. However, for whatever reasons, no stand has been taken as to the equivalence of the diplomas awarded by CPS Mumbai.