Supreme Court grants relief to MBBS students in NMC CBME passing criteria dispute

New Delhi: While considering a special leave petition challenging the non-applicability of the National Medical Commission's Corrigendum in the Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) Curriculum Guidelines, the Supreme Court recently granted relief to the affected petitioner students and regularised their admission, conduct, and conclusion of the MBBS course during the pendency of the litigation.

Further, the Apex Court Division bench of Justices Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Alok Aradhe has also directed the authorities to issue degrees to the petitioner students within 3 weeks.

The matter concerned the requirement of minimum qualifying marks in the MBBS exam. While under the CBME Curriculum guidelines, the minimum qualifying marks in theory were 50 per cent, NMC, through the Corrigendum dated September 1, 2023, had reduced the minimum qualifying marks in theory from 50 to 40 per cent.

In their plea, the petitioner had sought quashing of the public notice dated October 3, 2023, issued by NMC and the consequential directions for the applications of the CBME Curriculum Guidelines dated 1 August 2023.

Also Read: NMC releases final regulations on MBBS Curriculum

Their grievance was the non-application of the NMC corrigendum, under which the qualifying theory marks were reduced, while maintaining the overall requirement of 50 per cent aggregate and 60 per cent in the practical components. They argued that the corrigendum was merely clarificatory in nature and ought to be read as part and parcel of the original Guidelines with retrospective effect.

As per the latest media report by SCC Online, the petitioners further argued that their supplementary examination results were declared on 18 August 2023, i.e., after issuance of the original Guidelines dated 1 August 2023 but before the Corrigendum dated September 1, 2023. They claimed that they were assessed based on an unclear and inconsistent interpretation of the qualifying criteria prevailing before issuance of the corrigendum.

They contended that they would have been declared as having passed the examination if the said corrigendum had been applied. Therefore, they would have been eligible for progression in the MBBS course.

Earlier, while considering the matter, the Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandigarh declined to grant retrospective effect to the said corrigendum, holding that academic standards and minimum eligibility criteria ought not to be interfered with in the exercise of writ jurisdiction. Thereby, the High Court had refused to order a revision of the petitioners' results.

Challenging this, they approached the Supreme Court. They submitted that based on an interim order dated 7 November 2023, they were permitted to continue their studies and had since completed the Second and Third Professional examinations and were appearing in the Final Professional examination. Therefore, they urged the Court that withdrawing such a benefit at this stage would cause grave prejudice and irreparable academic loss to them.

Further, the petitioners sought parity with similarly placed students in connected proceedings, wherein interim protection had been granted by the Supreme Court in an order dated 16 May 2025 and also relied on the decision of the High Courts of Kerala and Madras to argue that the corrigendum, being clarificatory, must be applied uniformly to avoid arbitrariness under Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

After hearing the counsel, the Apex Court ordered the delay in filing of the special leave petition to be condoned and directed to issue notice in the matter. In addition to the usual mode of service, it granted liberty to the petitioners to serve notice to the authorities through the Standing Counsel.

Meanwhile, by way of an ad interim order, the Court directed the authorities to permit the petitioners to continue with their courses, which they were pursuing, subject to the outcome of the special leave petition.

During the hearing of the matter on May 21, 2026, the Apex Court observed that it was an admitted fact that, pending litigation, all the petitioners had completed their courses.

"In this view of the matter and in the peculiar facts of the present case, we direct that the admission, conduct and conclusion of the course by the petitioners are regularized. The concerned authorities shall issue degrees in favour of the petitioners within a period of three weeks from today," ordered the Court.

"We further direct the National Medical Commission to instruct the University for taking necessary action," it added.

However, keeping the question of the law open, the bench sought response from NMC and listed the matter for further hearing in July. It ordered, "Insofar as the question of law is concerned, we will hear Mr. Gaurav Sharma, learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the Medical Commission and pass orders for appropriate declaration of law...List on 28.07.2026."

To view the order, click on the link below:

https://medicaldialogues.in/pdf_upload/2026/05/26/supreme-court-cbme-349989.pdf

Also Read: NMC Revises CBME Guidelines, Modifies MBBS Exam Passing Criteria