NEET-UG Controversy: Counselling To Continue, Rules High Court; NTA Given 3 Weeks To Reply

New Delhi: Counselling for admissions to medical colleges will continue despite the raging controversy over alleged paper leak, grant of grace marks and irregularities in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for undergraduates (NEET-UG) 2024.

Refusing to stay the process of counselling, a single judge bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna of Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted more than three weeks’ time to the National Testing Agency (NTA) to file its reply. The high court fixed July 5 as the date for next hearing.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing NTA, told the high court that a transfer petition is being filed requesting for transfer of all cases in the matter from various high courts to the Supreme Court. He added that the move aims to consolidate the hearings to avoid confusion and conflicting orders amongst students.

Justice Bansal Krishna noted that the NTA will soon file a transfer petition in Supreme Court and hence postponed the matter for hearing.

A day earlier, Supreme Court refused to stay the NEET-UG 2024 result-based counselling process for admissions in MBBS, BDS and other courses for successful candidates.

The top court, while hearing a plea seeking recall of NEET-UG results and reconduct of the entrance exam, issued a notice to NTA and sought responses from the Centre and the testing body. The vacation bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah said what the NTA was supposed to do was sacrosanct.

“Sanctity (of the exam) has been affected, so we need answers,” the court said.

NEET-UG 2024 was held on May 5, while results were declared on June 4.

Hundreds of NEET aspirants have been staging protests across the country, alleging paper leaks and other irregularities observed in the exam results.

Also Read: NEET UG Controversy: Committee Formed To Recheck Result Of 1,563 Students