Sangharsh Samiti protests seat allocation at Vaishno Devi medical college

The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Sangharsh Samiti (SMVSS), a conglomerate of several organisations, staged a protest in Jammu’s old city on Saturday demanding that Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Medical College be declared a minority institution and that the recently released admission list be cancelled.

The agitation comes after 42 Muslim students, one Sikh candidate, and seven Hindu candidates qualified for the sanctioned 50 MBBS seats for the 2025–26 academic session through the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET).

SMVSS Convenor Sukhvir Mankotia said the protest march began from the Raghunath Temple and later moved through City Chowk to Shalamar Chowk. A large number of men and women participated, raising objections to the seat allocation and questioning the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) for not reserving a quota for Hindu students.

Mankotia said similar demonstrations were organised in several districts across the region. The Samiti alleges “disparity” in the admission process and contends that since the medical college was established by the Shrine Board using donations from Hindu pilgrims, the institution should admit only Hindu students.

He further demanded that the Muslim students admitted this year be shifted to other medical colleges, warning that the agitation could intensify in the coming days if their demands are not met.