NEET 2021 counselling: SC quashes plea to hold stray round for vacant seats

The Supreme Court bench comprising Justices M R Shah and Aniruddha Bose on Friday dismisses the pleas that sought a fresh stray counselling round to fill up the vacant seats for the postgraduate course under All India Quota (AIQ) in the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) 2021.

The bench said that granting a stray round of counselling for NEET 2021 would have public health implications. 

The Supreme Court said that the decision of the government and MCC not to allow special stray round is in the interest of medical education and public health.

The pleas were seeking a stray round of counselling to fill 1,456 seats in NEET-PG-2021.

Earlier, the bench on Thursday orally observed that there should be a limit for every exercise and admissions made after 1.5 years might compromise medical education and health of the people, while reserving order on pleas seeking a special stray round of counselling for NEET-PG 2021, to fill vacant seats.

A vacation bench comprising Justices M.R. Shah and Aniruddha Bose said there must be a limit on the number of rounds of counselling to fill vacant seats. "For many years, the seats have remained vacant & it's not for the very first time...There has to be a limit for every exercise, and seats may remain vacant even after 10 rounds," said Justice Shah.

The bench further added that after 8 or 9 rounds of counselling, the seats are still vacant and students cannot claim rights after 1.5 years. "Can it be said now that after 1.5 years, you will be given admission and compromise the health of people," the bench orally remarked.

Noting that it's a three-year course, the bench added, "There cannot be any compromise with education... Suppose you're hungry for 6 months, can you eat everything in 1 day? No...education is like that."

The Centre's counsel submitted that those who qualified NEET PG-2021 have already started attending classes since February, and if vacant seats are filled up now then they would be behind the Class for over six months. He further pointed out that teachers would also have to teach the students who will come in NEET PG 2022.

The Centre's counsel clarified that out of 1,456 vacant seats, majority are in non-clinical or teaching, and nobody wants to go into the teaching area, and also nobody came for the deposits. "These are seats taken, but admission not taken," added Additional Solicitor General Balbir Singh, representing the Centre.