Supreme Court directs Army College of Medical Sciences to pay pending stipends to 2022 interns.
Court says interns worked hard and must be paid as a matter of right.
New Delhi: On August 1, the Supreme Court of India directed the Army College of Medical Sciences (ACMS), located in Delhi, to pay pending stipends to MBBS interns from the 2022 batch. The court said that the interns are entitled to the stipend as a “matter of right”.
The matter was heard by a bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Aravind Kumar, in response to a petition filed by medical graduate Abhishek Yadav and others. The petitioners were represented by advocate Tanvi Dubey.
Previously, in September 2023, the Supreme Court had issued an order mandating the payment of Rs 25,000 per month as stipend for MBBS interns starting from October 2023.
However, the interns who had worked in the college prior to that—specifically the 2022 batch—were not given any such compensation, which led to the filing of the current petition.
At the start of the hearing, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia asked senior advocate R Balasubramanian, who appeared on behalf of ACMS, why the 2022 batch of interns had not received their stipend even after almost three years.
Questioning the college’s stance, Justice Dhulia remarked,
“Why will you pay a stipend? They deserve it as a matter of right.”
Justice Aravind Kumar also strongly criticised the actions of ACMS. Referring to the long hours of work undertaken by the interns, he asked the college’s counsel,
“You make them work for 18 hours, 19 hours, and you don’t want to pay them a stipend?”
In response, Balasubramanian claimed that ACMS is run by a private society and does not receive any funding from the government.
However, the court was not convinced by this argument. It stated firmly that the students had provided valuable services to the college and hence deserved compensation.
The bench said,
“These students have worked for the college. They must be paid.”
Following this, Balasubramanian made a statement before the court assuring that the same Rs 25,000 monthly stipend, which had been extended to the newer batch, would also be paid to the interns from the 2022 batch.
The Supreme Court took into account earlier decisions made by a three-judge bench in similar matters and held that all students who were in the same situation should be given equal treatment.
The bench observed,
“We are of the opinion that the same benefit ought to be given to the previous batch as well… We direct that interns of 2022, who had done their internship with Army Medical College, also be paid an amount of Rs. 25,000 per month. Let the same be calculated and paid within eight weeks.”
During the hearing, advocate Tanvi Dubey also raised the issue of foreign medical graduates, stating that they were similarly being made to work without pay.
Highlighting the severity of the issue, she argued that such unpaid internships amount to bonded labour.
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Referring to this point, the bench asked,
“Why after rigorous hours the students are yet not paid stipend?”
It further directed that the matter regarding stipends for foreign medical graduates be listed for urgent and final hearing.
CASE TITLE:
ABHISHEK YADAV vs ARMY COLLEGE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES
W.P.(C) No. 730/2022
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