NEET PG Transparency Case: When is Next Supreme Court Hearing? Here's What We Know
Supreme Court of India
New Delhi: The plea seeking transparency in the National Eligibility-Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2024 exam was deferred again by the Supreme Court on April 22, when the matter was listed for a hearing. Even though the matter was listed as item number 34 for the day, it went unheard. While there is still no clarity on when the matter will be taken up next, according to the Supreme Court's website, the Court will likely consider the matter on April 29, 2025.
The plea was filed by a group of NEET PG aspirants who alleged that there was a lack of transparency and adherence to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) by the National Board of Examinations (NBEMS), which conducted the NEET PG 2024 exam.
However, after being filed in September last year, the plea has been deferred time and again by the Supreme Court. Initially, while considering the matter, the Supreme Court on September 20 had expressed displeasure over the last-minute changes in the exam pattern by NBE.
Terming it to be "unusual", the Apex Court bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra had issued notices to the NBE and the Union Government, asking them to file their counter within a week.
Also Read: NEET PG dilemma deepens as Supreme Court defers hearing again
However, during the hearing on September 30, the plea was postponed as no one appeared on behalf of the Central Government. On that day, CJI Chandrachud requested all the Additional Solicitor Generals (ASGs) to be present for the upcoming hearing on October 4, 2024.
Later, the plea once again got postponed on October 25 as NBE had pointed out before the top court bench that while they had filed a detailed response, the Union Government had not. Thereafter, the matter was deferred again on later dates. Recently, the hearing on March 25, 2025 got deferred due to the formation of a special Supreme Court bench in the second half of the day. Again, the hearing scheduled on April 8 was deferred.
Recently, the matter was scheduled to be heard as item number 34 on Tuesday i.e. April 22, 2025. However, it went unheard and now it is likely to be taken up by the Apex Court on April 29, 2025.
What are the petitioners demanding?
In their plea filed before the apex court, NEET-PG aspirants claimed that the introduction of two shifts, normalisation method, and change in the tie-breaker criterion just three days before the examination affected the students adversely.
The petitioners contended that the NEET-PG information bulletin could be amended at the whims and fancy of the authorities and no rules or regulations existed governing the conduct of examinations.
It challenged the National Board of Examinations (NBE) practice of not disclosing question papers, answer keys, or response sheets of candidates for the exam this year.
The plea said that there was a clear lack of transparency in the conduct of the examination since none of the documents allowed students to check their performance, adding that neither the question paper, nor the response sheet filled in by candidates, or an answer key was supplied to the students, and merely a scorecard had been provided.
The petition, filed by advocate Parul Shukla, highlighted that unlike previous years where the candidate used to receive their total score along with the number of correctly attempted questions and the number of incorrectly attempted questions, the results released on August 23 this year did not provide the total score of the candidate.
"The method/manner in which examination under the NEET PG 2024 is conducted by the respondents (authorities) is manifestly arbitrary and against the principles of transparency and fairness in state action as enshrined under Article 14 of the Constitution of India," it added.
The plea said that NEET-PG had never been held in two shifts before and had always remained a single-shift and single-day examination to ensure a uniform examination standard and fairness of the national exam.
It highlighted a "serious patent defect in the conduct of the examination", requiring redressal in order to achieve a clean, transparent and effective system of examination which gives the best candidates.
"The NEET-PG is a multidisciplinary exam where one’s rank also determines their ability to opt for the course and field of their choice. Any slight variation in marks would bar several candidates from specialising in their field of interest," it added.
While the allegations and concerns regarding the NEET PG 2024 examination are yet to be addressed by the Supreme Court, the aspirants for NEET PG 2025 exam are now concerned over the exam pattern of the PG entrance examination, to be held on June 15, 2025.
Also Read: NEET PG 2024 Transparency Case Hearing listed for tomorrow
