Supreme Court notice to IIT Kharagpur on student's plea seeking medical transfer

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has sought response from IIT Kharagpur and others on a plea of a first-year Bachelor of Architecture student suffering from Borderline Personality Disorder seeking transfer to IIT Delhi. A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan has issued notices to IIT Kharagpur, IIT Delhi, and AIIMS.

"Issue notice to the respondents, returnable on October 10, 2025," the bench said. The petitioner, in his plea filed through advocate Vipin Nair, contended that he was denied transfer despite compliance with all prescribed procedures and established precedents.

"This medical facility is admittedly not available at Kharagpur and therefore the request for being treated at AIIMS Delhi which is in very close proximity to IIT Delhi. "The concerned transfer rules applicable in cases like the present one clearly permit such transfers on medical grounds," the plea said.

Also read IIT Guwahati confirms GATE schedule won’t overlap with UPSC ESE 2026 exam

The petitioner suffers from documented Borderline Personality Disorder which requires specialised Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation therapy, available at AIIMS Delhi, and parental supervision.

The student has claimed IIT Kharagpur's denial of transfer prevented him from accessing life-preserving medical treatment. The institute has approved identical medical transfers for other students, he claimed.

"Issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction directing the 1st and 2nd Respondents to jointly and simultaneously process the Petitioner's medical transfer application in strict accordance with the Inter-IIT Transfer Rules within a period of two weeks, with the medical board being constituted exclusively at AIIMS Delhi or IIT Delhi," the plea said.