Hon'ble Judges/Coram:
A.N. Sen, P.N. Bhagwati and Ranganath Misra JUDGMENT
P.N. Bhagwati, J.
1. This group of Writ Petitions raises a
question of great national importance affecting admissions to medical colleges, both at the under-graduate and at the post-graduate levels. The
question is, whether, consistently with the constitutional values, admissions to a medical college or any other institution of higher learning situate in a State can be confined to those who have their 'domicile' within the State or who are resident within the State for a specified number of years or can any reservation in admissions be made for them so as to give them
precedence over those who do not possess 'domicile' or residential qualification within the State, irrespective of merit.
This question has assumed considerable significance in the present day context, because we find that today the integrity of the nation is threatened by the divisive forces of regionalism, linguism and communalism and regional linguistic and communal loyalties are gaining ascendancy in national life and seeking to tear apart and destroy national integrity. We tend to forget that India is one nation and we are all Indians first and Indians last. It is time we remind ourselves what the great visionary and builder of modern India, Jawaharlal Nehru said, "Who dies if India lives: who lives if India dies ?" We must realise, and this is unfortunately that many in public life tend to overlook, sometimes out of ignorance of the forces of history and sometimes deliberately with a view to promoting their self-interest, that national interest must inevitably and for ever prevail over any other considerations proceeding from regional, linguistic or communal attachments. If only we keep these basic considerations uppermost in our minds and follow the sure path indicated by the founding fathers of the Constitution, we do not think the question arising in this group of writ petitions should present any difficulty of solution.
2. The history of India over the past centuries bears witness to the fact that India was at no time a single political unit. Even during the reign of the Maurya dynasty, though a large part of the country was under the sovereignty of the Mauryan kings, there were considerable portions of the territory which were under the rule of independent kingdoms. So also during the Moghul rule which extended over large parts of the territory of India, there were independent rulers who enjoyed political sovereignty over the territories of their respective kingdoms. It is an interesting fact of history that India was forged into a nation neither on account of a common language nor on account of the continued existence of a single political regime over its territories but on account of a common culture evolved over the centuries. It is cultural unity-something more fundamental and enduring that any other bond which may unite the people of a country together-which has welded this country into a nation. But, until the advent of the British rule, it was not constituted into a single political unit. There were throughout the period of history for which we have fairly authenticated account, various kingdoms and principalities which were occasionally engaged in conflict with........