NEET PG Admissions: SC junks IMA Bihar's plea challenging Minimum Percentile criteria

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has recently dismissed a plea challenging minimum percentile criteria in National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to postgraduate medical courses.

Bihar State Branch of Indian Medical Association had filed the special leave petition challenging the previous order of the Delhi High Court bench which had upheld the regulation that mandated that 50th percentile minimum marks is necessary for clearing NEET-PG entrance examination and become eligible for admission to PG medical courses.

However, the top court bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice PS Narsimha denied entertaining the plea on March 27.

"We are not inclined to entertain the Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution. The Special Leave Petition is accordingly dismissed," read the order.

The plea by IMA Bihar had challenged the previous judgment of the Delhi High Court bench, which had upheld the minimum percentile criteria for NEET PG admissions.

Also Read: Percentage Or Percentile For NEET PG? Petition in Delhi High court

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that three doctors had filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the Delhi HC seeking admission into postgraduate courses. They had challenged the Postgraduate Medical Education (Amendment) Regulations, 2018 (as amended on 05.04.2018) and its requirement for minimum marks of 50th percentile as a mandatory requirement for the general category and 40th percentile for the reserved category for admission to postgraduate courses. They had claimed that the requirement was arbitrary, unjustified and contrary to Article 14, Article 19 (1) (g) and Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

It was the grievance of the petitioners that the percentile system prescribed under Regulation 9(3) of the amended amended Regulation is a faulty system as due to the percentile system, a large number of seats are lying vacant even though candidates who are efficient and willing are available.

However, while considering the matter, the Delhi HC bench had opined that the erstwhile Medical Council of India (MCI), now National Medical Commission (NMC) has the authority to ensure highest standards of medical education in India.

Dismissing the PIL, the HC bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad had last year observed, "this Court emphasizes that the lowering of the standards of medical education has the potential of wreaking havoc on society at large due to the risk that practice of medicine entails; it involves in its ambit the matter of life and death, and therefore, it would be unconscionable for this Court to interfere in the standards duly and diligently set by the governing authority."

"This Court, therefore, cannot issue a mandamus directing the Respondents to fill up the seats, especially when the persons concerned have not obtained the minimum percentile as this Court is dealing with admissions to postgraduate courses in various medical colleges, and there cannot be any compromise on the issue of quality of doctors/ specialists as it involves a risk to human lives. Resultantly, no case for interference is made out in the matter," the HC bench had added at that time.

Although IMA Bihar challenged the HC order and approached the Supreme Court, the Apex court has now denied to entertain the plea.

To read the order, click on the link below:

https://medicaldialogues.in/pdf_upload/sc-order-neet-pg-206581.pdf

Also Read: Lowering medical education standards can wreak havoc on society: Delhi HC dismisses plea challenging 50th minimum percentile in NEET PG