Tamil Nadu knocks Supreme Court's door against NEET’s constitutional validity

After trying hard to remove the NEET entrance examination from the state for a long, now the Tamil Nadu government has moved to Supreme Court to challenge the constitutional validity of NEET. The state has alleged that the single-window examination for admissions to UG medical colleges violates the principle of federalism, read here for more details.

Tamil Nadu government opines that the NEET entrance examination must be removed from the state for admissions to undergraduate medical courses as it supports affluent candidates. Latest is, the state has moved Supreme Court to challenge the constitutional validity of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), alleging the single-window examination for admissions to medical colleges across the country violates the principle of federalism, which is part of the basic structure of constitutional principle of federalism.

“Introduction of NEET is violative of the federal structure, as it takes away the power of the states to admit students to government seats in medical colleges,” the state government said in its plea, as reported by Hindustan Times.

The petition is filed under Article 131 of the Constitution, which allows the Supreme Court to adjudicate disputes between the Centre and state/s. Tamil Nadu government sought a declaration from the court to hold Section 14 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 prescribing a common test for admission to undergraduate and post-graduate medical courses as “ultra vires” the Constitution on multiple grounds.

The state government has also alleged that the entrance exam violates the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution as it “discriminates against students from rural areas and state boards”. 

The state said NEET is modelled on CBSE/NCERT syllabus, which puts rural students at a loss. “Also, they (students from rural parts) lack economic resources to afford coaching classes which put them at a greater disadvantage to access medical colleges in the state despite good scores in their state boards,” the state alleged.

Read more:

• NEET UG 2023 registration process to commence soon at neet.nta.nic.in
• NEET UG 2023 registration to commence by February end