Today(on 20th June), The Supreme Court has issued a stay on all NEET-UG 2024 examination malpractice cases pending in various High Courts, directing the Centre and NTA to respond by July 8.
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NEW DELHI: Today(on 20th June), The Supreme Court on Thursday paused all ongoing cases related to alleged leaks and malpractices in the NEET-UG 2024 examination across various High Courts. The court also issued a notice to the Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA), demanding their responses by July 8, the next scheduled hearing date.
The bench, consisting of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice SVN Bhatti, addressed a total of 14 petitions during the session. Of these, 10 were filed by 49 students and a student organization called the ‘Student Federation of India’. The remaining four petitions were submitted by the NTA.
One of the students’ petitions called for the formation of a court-appointed committee to investigate the NEET exam row. However, the Supreme Court dismissed this demand. Furthermore, the court refused to halt the NEET counselling process, maintaining its stance that if the examination proceeds after the final hearing, the counselling should also follow suit.
During the hearing, one of the lawyers representing the students highlighted a specific issue faced by some students at a centre in Meghalaya.
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He stated-
“These students who took the exam at the Meghalaya center…they lost 45 minutes. They should be included among the 1563 students.”
In response, the bench replied-
“Let the union and NTA respond. Issue a notice. Responses are to be filed by July 8. No injunction.”
Adding to this, the Supreme Court issued a notice in the plea filed by the National Testing Agency (NTA) seeking to transfer all cases related to this year’s NEET, currently pending before various High Courts, to the apex court.
A Vacation Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and SVN Bhatti also stayed proceedings related to NEET before various High Courts. The matter has been tagged with related pleas and will be heard next on July 8.
When counsel for NTA asked the Court for a stay on High Court proceedings, the Court responded-
“Please inform the High Court that notice has now been issued. Previously, you may have mentioned the transfer application…today, we only learned from Bar & Bench and Live Law about the developments in the OMR sheet case.”
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In response to a plea by students who lost 45 minutes of the exam at a centre in Meghalaya, the Court reiterated-
“There is no stay on counselling. If the examination proceeds after the final hearing, counselling will also proceed accordingly.”
Regarding another plea concerning the postgraduate NEET scheduled for June 23, the Court indicated that the matter would be registered as a separate case and also heard on July 8.
