New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a woman's petition seeking to recover ₹ 30 lakh she claimed she had given to a man to secure her daughter's admission to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), saying seats in the MBBS course at one of the premier institutes of medicine are not for sale.

Refusing to grant any relief to the woman, Justice Jasmeet Singh observed that the woman herself "perpetuated an illegality" and the law does not recognise contracts having an object that is unlawful, immoral, and against public policy.

"It is a known fact that AIIMS is one of the premier institutes of medicine in India. Children spend hours and hours preparing for the entrance to AIIMS. The seats in the MBBS course at AIIMS are not for sale. The appellant may be gullible but the court can't come to the assistance of a person who has perpetuated an illegality," said the court.

The woman had moved the High Court to appeal against a lower court order rejecting her lawsuit to recover ₹ 30 lakh from the man who allegedly lured her into paying money to secure a seat for her daughter claiming to have "contacts" with the Health Minister and officials at the institute.

The court observed that students seeking admission to AIIMS study 18 hours a day and the appellant tried to "jump the queue" by cheating.

"If by paying ₹ 40 lakh you are able to get a seat, what is going to happen to our country? The facts of the case paint an abysmal picture," the court said, maintaining there was no illegality in the lower court order.