Today, On 27th March, The Supreme Court asked the Centre and other authorities to respond to a petition concerning JEE-Advanced 2025. The plea raises concerns about eligibility criteria and exam-related issues. The court’s notice seeks clarity on the matter before making a decision. Further hearings will determine if any changes are required for the exam process.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court requested responses from the Centre and other parties regarding a petition that seeks to allow students who passed their Class 12 exams in 2023 to participate in the JEE-Advanced 2025 for admission to the prestigious IITs.
A bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih issued notices to the Centre, the Joint Admission Board (JAB), and others involved, asking for their responses as the JAB supervise the JEE-Advanced.
The petition submitted by 18 aspiring IIT candidates who completed their Class 12 exams in 2023. They highlighted that while they are eligible to take a final attempt in the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)-Mains in 2025, they are ineligible for the JEE-Advanced, which is set to take place on May 18.
The bench stated,
“Issue notice, returnable on April 21, 2025,”
Senior Advocate Shadan Farasat represented the petitioners.
The plea, filed through Advocate Mrinmoi Chatterjee, argued,
“The lack of uniformity in the number of attempts allowed for JEE-Mains and Advanced deprives the petitioners of equal opportunity to secure admission to IIT compared to students who passed Class 12 in 2024 and 2025.”
The plea stated that admissions to the IITs are secured through a two-step entrance examination process: JEE-Mains followed by JEE-Advanced, with JEE-Mains being conducted in two sessions each year.
The petitioners expressed their dissatisfaction with what they termed an “abrupt and arbitrary policy reversal” regarding the eligibility criteria for JEE-Advanced 2025 by the JAB.
Initially, on November 5, 2024, the allowable attempts were increased from two to three, but this decision was rescinded just days later, on November 18.
They argued,
“The restriction on the number of attempts to only two is inadequate, excessive, and detrimental to the interests of thousands of IIT aspirants, including the petitioners.”
The revised eligibility criteria now only allow candidates who completed their Class 12 in 2024 and 2025 to participate in JEE-Advanced 2025.
In contrast, the rules for JEE-Mains permit candidates to attempt the exam up to six times over a period of three consecutive years. The plea pointed out that the JEE-Advanced imposes a limit of only two attempts, highlighting this disparity as “irrational, discriminatory, and inherently arbitrary, warranting it to be set aside.”
The petitioners referenced a January 10 order from the Supreme Court regarding a separate petition, which noted that a press release from JAB on November 5 stated that students who appeared for Class 12 examinations in 2023, 2024, and 2025 would be eligible for JEE-Advanced.
However, a subsequent press release on November 18 restricted eligibility to only the 2024 and 2025 academic years.
The Supreme Court indicated that students who had withdrawn from their courses between November 5 and November 18, 2024, would be allowed to register for JEE-Advanced.