The plea, filed by three transgender persons, urges the Court to direct the government to reserve 1% of PG medical seats specifically for transgender students.
NEW DELHI: 5th May: On Monday, the Supreme Court of India took a major step toward social justice by issuing a notice on a petition filed by three transgender students. The petition demands 1% horizontal reservation in postgraduate (PG) medical college seats through the NEET-PG 2025-26 examination.
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A Bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan heard the matter and issued notice to the central government and relevant authorities.
The plea, filed by three transgender persons, urges the Court to direct the government to reserve 1% of PG medical seats specifically for transgender students.
They argue that the present NEET PG 2025-26 admission notification, issued in April, fails to provide such reservation and therefore violates the constitutional and legal rights of transgender individuals.
“In the absence of horizontal reservations, the petitioners, who are (among) the few transgender persons in the country who are pursuing/ have completed MBBS and are planning to pursue their postgraduation, would be deprived of equal opportunity with no specific reservation being extended to them to ensure representation of transgender persons in postgraduate medical education despite transgender persons facing several social barriers,” the plea states.
The petition highlights that the current NEET PG notification goes against the Supreme Court’s 2014 decision in the NALSA (National Legal Services Authority) v. Union of India case. In that judgment, the top court had recognised transgender persons as a “third gender” and directed the government to treat them as socially and educationally backward classes.
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The Court had further asked the government to extend reservations in public employment and educational institutions to ensure transgender persons are not excluded from mainstream opportunities.
The plea also mentions that the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 imposes a duty on the government to ensure full and effective participation of transgender persons in society, including in education and employment.
By not providing horizontal reservation in NEET PG 2025-26, the petitioners claim that the authorities have failed to uphold the law meant to protect their rights.
The petition argues that the NEET PG 2025-26 admission notice is unconstitutional as it violates several fundamental rights, including:
- Article 14 – Right to Equality
- Article 15 – Protection from Discrimination
- Article 19(1)(a) – Freedom of Speech and Expression
- Article 21 – Right to Life and Personal Liberty
The petitioners have also asked the Court to stay the NEET PG admission notice dated April 16, 2025, until the case is decided. They argue that continuing with the current admission process without reservation would lead to further exclusion and discrimination.
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Interestingly, the petitioners come from diverse social backgrounds:
- One is from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community,
- One belongs to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category,
- One is from the General/Open category.
Despite their academic qualifications and aspirations, they fear being denied a fair chance in postgraduate medical education due to lack of reservation.
The petition has been filed through Advocate Paras Nath Singh, who is representing the three transgender students before the Supreme Court.
[ Case Title: Kiran AR and ors v. Union of India and ors]
