New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has cleared up the deck for honoring MBBS degrees to AIIMS students with signatures of all the authoritative signers, as it has directed the Institute’s governing body president and Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss and the Dean (Academics) to sign the degrees within 24 hours.

Justice Ravinder Bhatt has ordered the AIIMS management to send on the 49 degrees already issued to the medical students by it to the Health Ministry in order that they could be sent to Chennai through flight to allow the Minister, on a visit there, to sign them.

Sudhir Walia, Delhi High Court lawyer said, “A special messenger will carry these degrees to the Health Minister who we are told is in Chennai. He will sign it and then by tomorrow evening, the students will have their degree.”

The court has also cleared that Mr. Ramadoss will have to sign degrees, if any student needs the certificate before the convocation planned for September-end.

The physicians had approached the court stating the future of 700 doctors was in danger, after Ramadoss denied signing degrees calling them illegitimate, as they carried the signature of the registrar nominated by AIIMS director Dr. Venugopal.

"It was just an ego clash between the minister and the director. It’s the minister who is responsible for this mess. Thankfully this is the end of it,” said President, Resident Doctors Association, Dr Kumar Harsh.