Allahabad High Court Rules Subsidised Medical PG Doctors Cannot Evade Mandatory Service Bond

The Allahabad High Court has affirmed that medical professionals who receive postgraduate education at heavily subsidised rates in government medical colleges must complete their mandatory public service bonds. A Division Bench comprising Justice Shekhar B. Saraf and Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary at the Lucknow bench dismissed a petition challenging the two-year compulsory service bond, stressing that the requirement is designed to ensure adequate medical staffing in state hospitals and safeguard citizens' fundamental right to healthcare. The ruling came in response to a petition filed by Dr. Aparupa Sen Gupta, an MD graduate from SGPGI Lucknow, who argued that her bond obligation should lapse due to the government failing to offer a posting within three months of course completion. Rejecting her argument, the High Court clarified that administrative posting delays do not extinguish service obligations under state medical rules. However, acknowledging procedural lapses in providing her counselling opportunities, the bench directed the Director General of Medical Education to conduct fresh counselling within four weeks while adjusting her 89 days of senior residency toward the mandatory two-year service duration.

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