NEET 2026: SC issues notice on plea filed by 2 medical colleges seeking lower qualifying percentile
New Delhi: In a recent order, the Supreme Court has issued notice on a plea filed by two medical colleges seeking a reduction in the qualifying percentile for NEET UG 2026. The institutes cited a large number of MBBS seats that are lying vacant across the country following the NEET UG counselling rounds. The matter will be heard next on November 16.
The petition has been filed by Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute and Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute against the Union Government, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) and National Medical Commission (NMC).
The matter came up for hearing on November 5 before a bench comprising Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe.
Also read- Around 2,000 MBBS seats remain vacant, states seek NMC nod for mop up round
In the plea, the colleges have urged the competent authority to exercise its powers under existing NEET UG 2026 information bulletin provisions to lower the qualifying requirement and facilitate the filling of unoccupied seats.
Appearing for the colleges, senior advocate Shyam Divan referred to Clause II(b) of the qualifying criteria under Chapter 8 of the NEET UG 2026 information bulletin. He submitted that a large number of MBBS seats remained vacant and argued that the competent authority should use its powers under the provision to reduce the qualifying percentile.
The petition came amid a rise in vacant medical seats during the 2026 admission cycle. According to MCC data, 3,426 MBBS seats remained vacant after the third round of All India counselling this year, compared with 802 seats at the same stage last year. Even after the stray vacancy round, 837 MBBS seats remained unfilled across the country.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that altogether 837 MBBS seats remained vacant after the final round of NEET UG 2026 counselling. As per reported sources in the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC), of these, 824 seats were in deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry alone. The vacancies also included one seat at AIIMS Madurai and 12 seats at Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute in Kolar, Karnataka.
Educationists reportedly criticised the lack of a fee cap for deemed universities and pointed out that high-scoring NEET candidates are forced to forgo these seats because they cannot afford the exorbitant fees at a range from Rs 23 lakh to Rs 35 lakh, defeating the core purpose of a merit-based national entrance exam.
At the state level, Karnataka, Telangana, West Bengal and Rajasthan each reported more than 100 vacant MBBS seats this week after multiple rounds of counselling.
In the provisional allotment list for the special stray vacancy round, MCC recorded 537 MBBS allotment entries against 946 reported vacancies. The list also included 208 BDS and 66 BSc Nursing allotment entries.
Private medical colleges offer fee concessions
As per a Careers 360 report, with seats remaining vacant during the later stages of counselling, several private medical colleges, particularly deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and private institutions in Rajasthan, have reportedly offered fee concessions to attract MBBS aspirants.
In one case, a deemed medical university in Tamil Nadu offered a 40% reduction in annual tuition fees to an aspirant, bringing the amount down from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 15 lakh. Including hostel and other expenses, the total cost of the four-and-a-half-year course was expected to remain below Rs 80 lakh, compared with the original course fee of more than Rs 1 crore
In another case, a student received a concession of Rs 4.5 lakh on a total course fee of Rs 94.5 lakh at a self-financed medical college in Rajasthan.
Maharashtra also reports vacant MBBS seats
A similar situation was reported in Maharashtra, where 138 MBBS and BDS seats remained vacant after six rounds of centralised counselling conducted by the State Common Entrance Test (CET) Cell. These included 84 MBBS seats and 54 BDS seats.
This year, the Maharashtra government discontinued institution-level counselling and made it mandatory for all admissions to take place through the CET Cell. The decision followed complaints of admission denial and demands for excessive fees during college-level admission rounds in previous years.
Recently, the Bombay High Court declined to allow a private medical college to conduct institution-level counselling to fill vacant MBBS seats during the ongoing NEET UG 2026 admission process in Maharashtra, observing that the plea was premature as the state counselling process is still underway.
The court, however, recognised the legal position that medical colleges may be permitted to fill vacant seats through manual counselling after centralised admissions. It said the college could approach the Supreme Court to seek an extension of the admission deadline and permission to fill any seats left vacant after the state completes its admission process.
The observation was made after two private medical colleges approached the court, challenging the state government's decision to discontinue institute-level admissions, seeking permission to fill vacant MBBS and postgraduate medical seats through college-level counselling after centralised admission rounds end.
The colleges are Vedantaa Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS), Palghar, and Parbhani Medical College (PMC), Parbhani. They had filed separate petitions before the Bombay High Court's principal bench in Mumbai and its Aurangabad bench, respectively.
