Supreme Court Raises Alarm Over NEET PG 2025 Negative Marking Cut-Offs
The Supreme Court of India has voiced significant apprehension regarding the drastic reduction of qualifying cut-offs for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET PG) 2025, which have been lowered to zero and even negative marks. During a hearing on Friday, the court specifically highlighted concerns about a "minus 40" benchmark, questioning the implications of such a substantial dilution of admission standards for medical postgraduate programs.
Court Questions Government's Justification for Lowering Standards
According to Advocate Satyam Singh Rajput, who represented the petitioners before the Bench comprising Justice P S Narasimha and Justice Aradhe, the court was not persuaded by the government's argument that reducing cut-offs was necessary solely to fill vacant postgraduate medical seats. "The Bench acknowledged that seats may be vacant, but questioned the extent to which standards are being reduced," Singh explained, detailing the court's position on this critical matter.
The judges expressed particular concern about the trajectory of these reductions, noting that cut-offs have progressively declined from 50 to 47, then to zero, and now to negative marks. "That trajectory itself is worrying," Singh quoted the Bench as observing during the proceedings.
Competency Concerns Despite MBBS Qualifications
While the Centre submitted that candidates being admitted under these relaxed criteria are already MBBS-qualified, the petitioners raised serious questions about competency. They argued that merely holding an MBBS degree does not necessarily justify admissions when candidates are unable to clear the NEET PG examination itself, especially when scoring negative marks.
"Yes, they are MBBS-qualified, but if a candidate is unable to pass the NEET PG exam and is scoring negative marks, that is a concern," Singh stated, summarizing the court's observation on this crucial aspect of medical education quality.
Court Directs Government to File Detailed Affidavit
Taking a comprehensive view of the issue, the Supreme Court Bench has directed the Union government to file a detailed affidavit responding to all concerns raised about the NEET PG 2025 cut-off reductions. Although no specific date was fixed for filing this affidavit, Singh indicated that petitioners are likely to move a fresh application within a week, after which the court would decide on appropriate timelines.
Notably, the Supreme Court did not grant any interim stay on the ongoing NEET PG 2025 counselling process. "There is no stay on the existing counselling schedule. The third round of counselling will continue as per schedule," Singh clarified, providing important context about the current admission procedures.
Background of the Legal Challenge
The public interest litigation challenging the January 13 Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) notification was filed by Harisharan Devgan, Dr Saurav Kumar, Dr Lakshya Mittal and Dr Akash Soni through Senior Advocate Sonia Mathur, along with Advocates Satyam Singh Rajput. The notification had reduced qualifying percentiles for NEET PG 2025–26 admissions, permitting eligibility at zero and negative marks.
NEET-PG serves as the national-level eligibility-cum-ranking examination for MBBS graduates seeking admission to MD (Doctor of Medicine), MS (Master of Surgery), PG Diploma courses, and DNB (Diplomate of National Board) broad specialty programs across both public and private medical institutions throughout India.
The Supreme Court's intervention comes at a crucial time when medical education standards are under increased scrutiny, with implications for healthcare quality and patient safety across the nation. The court's concerns reflect broader questions about balancing seat occupancy with maintaining rigorous educational standards in critical healthcare professions.
