The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned why the qualifying percentile for NEET Super Speciality (NEET-SS) admissions had not been reduced for in-service government doctors and issued notices on a plea challenging the transfer of 152 vacant super-speciality seats from Tamil Nadu's in-service quota to the All India Quota (AIQ).
A vacation bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi sought responses from the concerned authorities while hearing petitions filed by the Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association and another petitioner.
The plea seeks to restrain the Tamil Nadu government from surrendering 152 vacant DM and MCh seats reserved for in-service government doctors to the AIQ during the 2025-26 admission process.
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Court highlights challenges faced by in-service doctors
During the hearing, Senior Advocate P. Wilson, appearing for the petitioners, argued that transferring the seats before completion of the counselling process would prejudice government doctors serving in Tamil Nadu and adversely affect the state's public healthcare system.
Wilson also submitted that the qualifying percentile for NEET-SS admissions has been lowered in previous years and urged the court to allow in-service candidates to compete for the vacant seats if the cut-off is reduced.
AI Generated Justice Nagarathna observed that government doctors constitute a distinct category because they continue serving patients while preparing for higher studies.
"Percentage has to be reduced because they are working. Otherwise, no government doctors can take this. They have to reduce the percentile," Justice Nagarathna observed.
The judge further noted that candidates preparing full-time for entrance examinations have an advantage over doctors balancing clinical duties with academic preparation.
She added that strengthening the skills of in-service doctors ultimately benefits the public healthcare system.
Bench questions earlier proceedings
The bench also questioned why the association representing in-service doctors had not been made a party in earlier proceedings that resulted in directions for converting vacant seats to the AIQ.
Justice Nagarathna remarked that the court was concerned with protecting public health and ensuring government doctors received a fair opportunity to pursue super-speciality education.
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Appearing for the National Medical Commission (NMC), advocate Mithu Jain submitted that the transfer of seats to the AIQ was based on an earlier Supreme Court order in the N. Karthikeyan case.
The bench, however, suggested that the NMC follow the precedent of reducing the qualifying percentile before converting the remaining vacant seats to the AIQ.
While the court declined to pass an interim order on the ongoing AIQ counselling process, it issued notices to the concerned authorities and listed the matter for further hearing on July 15.
FAQs
Q1. Why is the Supreme Court hearing the NEET-SS case?
The court is hearing a plea challenging the transfer of 152 vacant super-speciality seats reserved for Tamil Nadu's in-service government doctors to the All India Quota.
Q2. What did the Supreme Court say about the NEET-SS cut-off?
The court orally observed that the qualifying percentile for in-service government doctors should be lower because they continue serving in government hospitals while preparing for super-speciality admissions.
