PANAJI
The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the State government on a plea challenging the order of the High Court of Bombay at Goa that quashed the State’s decision to allocate vacant Children of Freedom Fighter quota seats to meritorious sportspersons under the sports quota.
The bench of Justice P S Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe issued notice on the petition filed by international sailor Pearl Milind Colvalcar.
The High Court, on August 25, quashed the Goa government’s decision to introduce a sports quota in MBBS and BDS admissions midway through the admission process.
It stated that the admission process shall be governed by the prospectus and timelines while strictly maintaining that the brochure cannot be altered at a subsequent stage, particularly once the process of admission has begun.
Colvalcar, who is seeking admission to an MBBS course under the sports quota in NEET (UG) 2025, in his petition before the Supreme Court, has argued that the High Court ruling is erroneous as it overlooks the Goa Sports Policy, 2009, which provides for 3 per cent reservation in all graduate courses for outstanding sports persons representing the State at national or international championships.
The High Court’s order was pronounced after hearing a petition filed by NEET candidate Akshay Srivastava, who challenged a notice dated August 1, 2025, issued by the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE), inviting applications from meritorious sportspersons to fill seats under the Children of Freedom Fighters (CFF) category.
Srivastava argued that introducing a fresh quota after the first round of counselling on August 5 violated this rule and defeated his legitimate expectation of securing a BDS seat on merit.
SC issues notice to govt on plea against HC sports quota order
