The Supreme Court on Thursday directed that counselling for undergraduate medical and engineering students who cleared the NEET will be centralised and conducted by the Madhya Pradesh government.
With this, a Bench led by Justice Anil R. Dave ordered the immediate cancellation of counselling sessions conducted by private colleges in Madhya Pradesh.
The court observed that the idea of centralised counselling was in tune with the Supreme Court's mandate for a common entrance test. The NEET was revived in April 11 and held this academic year as a single window test for admissions to MBBS and BDS courses this academic year.
“We observe that the mandate of our judgment was to hold a centralised entrance test followed by centralised counselling by the State to make it a one composite process... We, therefore, direct that admission to all medical seats shall be conducted by centralised counselling only by the State government and none else,” the Bench said.
Disposing of the Madhya Pradesh government’s plea for contempt action against private colleges for holding separate counselling, the apex court asked the State to hold counselling afresh and complete it by September 30.
The Bench said that private medical colleges could send their representatives at the place of counselling to witness the process. The court recorded the assurance given by the State that all seats, whether of government colleges or the private institutions, “shall be filled up and no seat shall remain vacant.”
Additional Solicitor-General P.S. Patwalia, appearing for Madhya Pradesh, told the Bench that though the State had already concluded the first round of counselling, it was willing to hold it afresh.
