SC junks plea seeking NEET 2025 re-exam for power outage affected candidates
Supreme Court of India
New Delhi: The Supreme Court recently dismissed the pleas filed by NEET UG 2025 candidates seeking a retest due to a power outage at their exam centres in Madhya Pradesh.
The Apex Court bench comprising Justices PS Narasimha and AS Chandurkar refused to interfere with the July 14 order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, noting that the Division Bench of the High Court had examined the issue from all possible aspects, including the reports of an independent expert committee.
It was observed by the top court bench that the findings of the High Court were correct, adding that it was not in the hands of the Court to pass orders for re-examination, since it was the prerogative of the National Testing Agency (NTA).
Also Read: Supreme Court to decide on NEET 2025 re-exam for power outage affected candidates
However, the bench directed that the students eligible for counselling should be allowed to register for the same and participate in the counselling process.
Even though a single-judge bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court had ordered a retest for NEET UG 2025 power outage affected candidates, later the order was set aside by a Division bench of the High Court.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that even though the Division bench of the HC comprising Vivek Rusia and Binod Kumar Dwivedi did not grant any relief to the petitioner candidates, who claimed that their performance was affected due to power outage during the examination, the bench directed NTA along with local administration of each district to ensure that all measures, especially the continuity of power supply is arranged in the future.
Consequently, the aspirants had filed a plea in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court order and sought an urgent listing of the matter on the ground that the counselling was scheduled to start from July 21.
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As per the latest media report by India Legal, on July 23, the top court bench refused to stay the NEET UG 2025 counselling process, stating that it would affect around 22 lakh students who appeared for the examination.
Appearing on behalf of one of the petitioners, a lady counsel sought provisional permission for the aggrieved students to register for counselling. However, the bench said that in other words, the petitioner was seeking a stay on the counselling, which was not possible.
At this outset, one of the other counsels clarified that the prayer was for re-examination. Thereafter, the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the Union Government, agreed to this demand.
Plea before High Court:
Around 27,000 students appeared for the NEET UG exam in 2025 in Indore, for which 49 centres were set up. In one of the pleas, the petitioner alleged purported mismanagement and lack of power backup for around 1 to 2 hours while organising NEET exam at some of the centres in Indore.
More than 60 petitions were filed before the High Court from Indore and Ujjain in connection with this issue. It was alleged by the petitioners that despite the red alert, the authorities failed making proper arrangements for a power backup and due to this, the candidates had to face complete mismanagement for 1 to 2 hours, because of which the students at the centres were forced to write their exam in the poorly lit areas. This caused extreme stress to them, alleged the petition.
Representing the NTA, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta countered that alternative power arrangements, including candles, emergency lights, and inverters, were available at the exam centres. He also presented a committee report stating that power was restored promptly after the outage was reported.
On June 23, a Single bench of the High Court comprising Justice Subodh Abhyankar of the Indore bench had ordered a re-test of 75 affected candidates while citing Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, which ensures equality and justice, as the basis for its decision, stating that the students were placed at a disadvantage through no fault of their own.
However, after the National Testing Agency (NTA) challenged the decision, the Division bench of the High Court had stayed the Single bench's direction in this regard and later in a July 14 order, the HC Division bench denied granting any relief to the petitioners seeking a re-examination.
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