MBBS Bond Policy: Is Haryana Government Promoting Bonded Labour?

The Probe’s Pavitra Utgikar, in conversation with Jagan Nath Bhandari, the counsel of petitioner Ananya Agarwal who moved a PIL before the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the Haryana government’s MBBS bond policy

MBBS bond policy

Ananya Agarwal, a first-year medical student in Rohtak, Haryana, has moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court with a Public Interest Litigation against the Haryana government’s bond policy. After giving her NEET UG exam with more than 18 lakh students, Ananya secured a 7601 rank. She was offered admission at Post Graduate Institute in Rohtak but was soon asked to sign a bond. In her PIL, Ananya has called the Haryana government’s bond policy a promotion of bonded labour that is violative of the fundamental rights of the students.

In a bid to cool tempers, the Haryana government on Wednesday announced that it would make changes to the policy and reduce the bond amount from Rs 40 lakhs to Rs 30 lakhs. The State Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar also said that the government would cut down the duration of mandatory government service from seven years to five years. 

The students have been protesting against the bond policy for nearly a month now. The student leaders have said that their agitation would continue as they are not happy with the proposed changes announced by the government. Some of the students have, in turn, asked the government to reduce the duration of compulsory government service to one year and the bond amount to be limited to 5 lakh rupees. Other student groups have asked the government to revoke the entire policy as it is violative of their fundamental rights. 

Ananya’s matter is listed for hearing on December 5, wherein the petitioner has requested the court to stay the Haryana bond policy during the pendency of the case in the court.