NEET 2018: CBSE may approach SC against Madras HC judgment

The national school board, sources in the HRD Ministry told The Indian Express, has sounded the government on the option of appealing against the order.

Madras High Court

THE CENTRAL Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) may approach the Supreme Court against the order of the Madras High Court to award 196 marks to all candidates who appeared for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) in Tamil this year.

The national school board, sources in the HRD Ministry told The Indian Express, has sounded the government on the option of appealing against the order. A final decision, however, will be made only after seeking legal opinion and consulting the Health Ministry.

The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday ordered the CBSE, which conducts NEET on behalf of the Health Ministry, to give four marks each for 49 questions to roughly 24,000 examinees on account of ambiguities in the Tamil translation of the said questions. The Board has been given two weeks to bring out a fresh list of qualified candidates.

Story continues below this ad

READ | NEET UG 2019: Exam date, eligibility, syllabus, application, fees, counselling details

Stating that the students who appeared for the exam in Tamil should be provided a level playing field, the court had said: “The difficulty of a student in taking an examination of such importance, in understanding rightly a wrong question, be howsoever mild the error, is to be appreciated, placing ourselves in his shoes and not in the shoes of those having the leisure of easy chair reflection.”

Implementing the High Court order, the government feels, could lead to more litigation as it would push a large number of candidates out of the current merit list. That apart, awarding an additional 196 marks to those who took the test in Tamil could also result in some candidates scoring more than the total marks. The NEET-2018 paper, for admission to medical and dental colleges, had 180 questions with total 720 marks.

“Moreover, the NEET bulletin clearly states that candidates opting for regional languages will be given a bi-lingual question paper and, in case of any ambiguity in translation, the English version will be treated as final,” said a source in the HRD Ministry explaining one of the grounds on which the CBSE could approach the apex court against the High Court order.

Story continues below this ad

The Board has been asked by the government to study the court order and deduce the implications of implementing it. Once, all possible scenarios are though of, then a decision on filing an appeal in the Supreme court will be taken.

This year, there are roughly 67,000 MBBS seats and 30,000 BDS seats on offer via NEET. About 13 lakh candidates appeared for the test, of which roughly 1.2 lakh were from Tamil Nadu. A total of 24,000 students had taken the test in Tamil.

Ritika Chopra

Ritika Chopra, an award-winning journalist with over 17 years of experience, serves as the Chief of the National Bureau (Govt) and National Education Editor at The Indian Express in New Delhi. In her current role, she oversees the newspaper's coverage of government policies and education. Ritika closely tracks the Union Government, focusing on the politically sensitive Election Commission of India and the Education Ministry, and has authored investigative stories that have prompted government responses. Ritika joined The Indian Express in 2015. Previously, she was part of the political bureau at The Economic Times, India’s largest financial daily. Her journalism career began in Kolkata, her birthplace, with the Hindustan Times in 2006 as an intern, before moving to Delhi in 2007. Since then, she has been reporting from the capital on politics, education, social sectors, and the Election Commission of India. ... Read More

In run for Vice-President, Radhakrishnan in pole position as numbers tilt in NDA favour

Political Pulse2 hr ago

While the numbers seem to be stacked in favour of the ruling BJP-led NDA in the Vice-Presidential election scheduled for Tuesday, in which the NDA’s candidate C P Radhakrishnan is pitted against the Opposition INDIA alliance’s nominee Justice (retired) P Sudershan Reddy, the decision of the BJD and the BRS to abstain from voting may further boost Radhakrishnan’s prospects.

View all shorts

Live Blog