The Supreme Court on Thursday barred medical admissions in Tamil Nadu till August 22, thus stalling any prospects of the State kickstarting medical admissions in the next couple of days in case an ordinance meant to freeze NEET this year in the State is promulgated.
The ordinance has already been cleared by the Union Law Ministry, after a favourable legal opinion from Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal. It was supposed to be promulgated by August 22.
The court has now effectively deflected the course of events.
Directing status quo in medical admissions till August 22, which is also the next date of court hearing, the apex court ordered the Medical Council of India (MCI) and the state government to chalk out a balancing plan — one by which both students who have got through NEET and rural students ill-equipped for NEET can be “adjusted” in the medical admission list.
A Bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A.M. Khanwilkar underlined that the Supreme Court will not allow NEET to be “demolished” at any cost.
“This is a human problem... Our motto is 'whatever we do, a student who has laboured for NEET and got a rank should not suffer, whatever be the cost',” Justice Misra observed.
The court further directed the State government to file the list of students from the Tamil Nadu State Board who appeared for NEET this year.
The Bench was hearing a petition filed by senior advocate Nalini Chidambaram and advocate Anushree Menon, appearing for a batch of CBSE students who cleared NEET in Tamil Nadu. They argued that the ordinance was unconstitutional and played with the lives of thousands of students who had prepared and cleared NEET.
Senior advocate Vikas Singh, for MCI, opposed any further delay in admissions. He submitted that Tamil Nadu has violated the mandate of the Supreme Court's orders that NEET would be the sole basis for medical admissions. Mr. Singh said Tamil Nadu was acting in contempt of the court's orders.
He said other states have already finished their second round of counselling, while Tamil Nadu has neither published its rank list nor started counselling.
“The State cannot create a fait accompli and say 'I will only do it this way'. They have to declare the rank list. It seems the State does not want its students poised on the equal platform NEET offers and is trying to create various categories of students – Plus Two and NEET,” Mr. Singh submitted.
He said any change in the admission mechanism now would render the NEET merit list redundant.
To this Tamil Nadu government, represented by senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, justified its ordinance, saying “every change in law is bound to bring some inconvenience to somebody. Does it mean the State cannot bring a law?”
“But why did you wake up so late to the plight of its rural students?” Justice Misra asked Mr. Naphade.
“No competent legislature should be asked such a question... whenever there is change in law, somebody will suffer,” Mr. Naphade replied.
“But we are concerned with the lives of young students here... You are a welfare state. We understand your concern for the rural students, but what will happen to students who got through NEET? Do you even have a plan for them?” Justice Misra asked Mr. Naphade
Senior advocate C.U. Singh, also for some students, said over 30000 students from State Board have qualified in NEET this year. The students had a whole year to prepare for the exams and any exemption given to Tamil Nadu would open the flood gates for similar demands of exemption from other states.
Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, submitted these were “potential” arguments after the promulgation of the ordinance, and it was premature to voice them now.
Mrs. Chidambaram argued that the recent ordinance to exempt Tamil Nadu from NEET this year was merely a political bargaining chip which would affect the lives and careers of students.
“The state government is prevaricating and attempting at the last moment to change the criteria for admission to MBBS seats in government medical colleges and government quota seats in self financing colleges in Tamil Nadu from NEET-based to Plus 2 marks in violation of the Supreme Court's decision and Section 10 D of the Medical Council of India Act. Tamil Nadu government is acting for extraneous considerations to benefit private state board schools,” the petition alleged.
