Supreme Court directs Centre to look into PIL filed by postgraduate doctors alleging alteration in NEET Super speciality exam

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Central government to look into a PIL filed by postgraduate doctors alleging that question pattern for NEET-Super Speciality 2021 has been altered, only to favour those who have done post-graduation in general medicine, at the cost of other disciplines (Prateek Rastogi vs National Board of Examination).

“Hold a meeting and put your house in order; The insensitive bureaucrats should not cheat the young doctors of the country,” said the Apex Court, as the Centre sought time to file its response on the PIL.

The two-Judge Bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and B.V. Nagarathna extended the matter for hearing on next Monday, once the Centre files its counter affidavit by the end of this week.

The bench was deciding the issue as to whether the NEET super speciality exams be conducted with a recent change in pattern after the issuance of notification and just one month prior to the examination.

NBE changed exam pattern just before the conducting of NEET-SS

Senior Counsel Shyam Diwan, appearing on behalf of the petitioners, pointed out the urgency in the matter as the exams were set to be held in November and the pattern right before the said exams has been changed by the National Board of Education (NBE), without any prior notification for the same.

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The plea said on July 27, 2021, the notification for the examination was released. In August, another notification was released which changed not altered, the complete pattern of the examination.

The Counsel on behalf of the respondents maintained their position that they be granted time to file reply and argue their position before the Court passes an order. Senior Counsel Maninder Singh, representing NBE, stated that the change in pattern was impending and inevitable. The change would have come prior to this stage, had the NBE obtained the requisite approvals from the Health ministry. Since the said approval from the authorities was delayed, the notification of the change in pattern was subsequently delayed, he added.

The Counsel for the respondents further reiterated that they would be able to satisfy the court with respect to the objective of the said change in pattern of the examinations.

The court pointed out that the executive have no right to play with the lives of students and young doctors in this manner; they pointed out what happened with the CLAT examinations as well and stated how lives and careers are at stake and they are far too valuable than the delay at the executive’s end with respect to giving approvals for changing the policy.

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Moreover, the court suggested that the ministries and the NBE should hold a meeting together and get “their house in order,” from the perspective of the students and their careers, which would be fundamentally affected by such a delayed decision.

The Court maintained their stand on the issue that the matter is liable to quashed, such that the new pattern cannot be implemented for this year’s examination, even if the matter is heard on Monday, however, the chance of representation would be provided to the respondents.

The Supreme Court, while strongly refuting the change in pattern of the examination for the purpose of NEET super speciality exam 2021, allowed the respondents to file their replies by the end of this week and posted the matter for hearing on Monday.