90% of students at Vaishno Devi Medical College in Jammu and Kashmir are Muslim, sparking protests from RSS-affiliated organisations. The administration maintains that admissions were conducted as per the rules.

Controversy has recently erupted over the first batch of admissions at the Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Institute of Medical Excellence in Katra, Jammu and Kashmir. Organisations affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) alleged that nearly 90% of the students admitted to the medical college are Kashmiri Muslims, while the number of local Hindu students is very low. Consequently, organisations affiliated with the Sangh Parivar demanded the cancellation of admissions and staged protests.

Activists from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal protested outside the college on Thursday. They also burned an effigy of the Chief Executive Officer of the Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. The protest was also supported by R.S. Pathania, BJP MLA from Udhampur. They say that it is unfair for Muslim students to dominate the college, which was built with donations from the Vaishno Devi Temple, and that seats should be reserved for Hindus. However, according to regulations, Vaishno Devi Medical Institute is not a minority college, so separate reservations for any community are not applicable.

Enrollment and Student Number

According to media reports, the Jammu and Kashmir Board of Professional Entrance Examinations had prepared a list of 50 students for the college. Of these, 42 were from the Kashmir region and 8 from the Jammu region. Of these, 36 Kashmiri Muslims and 3 from Jammu were successful in gaining admission to the college, which is what sparked the controversy.

College's Stand

The college administration, quoting officials, stated that admissions were made as per the rules. According to National Medical Council (NMC) regulations, all 1,685 seats in 13 medical colleges in Jammu and Kashmir are filled based on NEET rankings. Additionally, 85% of seats are reserved for UT domicile students, and the remaining 15% are open to students from the rest of India.

Impact of Delay in Admissions

The college stated that NMC approval was received on September 8, after which admissions began. At that time, the first round of counseling had already concluded for other medical colleges in the UT, and the second round was also nearing completion. Therefore, the list for Vaishno Devi Medical College was prepared after the third round of counseling.

Why the Dominance of Kashmiri Students?

JKBOPEE shortlisted a total of 5,865 UT domicile students for 13 medical colleges. Of these, 2,000 students were called for counseling. More than 70% of the students on this list were from the Muslim community. This explains the predominance of Kashmiri students at Vaishno Devi Medical College. Officials said this pattern is not new. Over the past few years, the majority of seats in colleges in the Jammu region have been filled by students from Kashmir. While the Jammu region has more seats, the trend remains that of Kashmiri students.