MCC NEET PG 2025 counselling faces long delay as Supreme Court grants NBEMS 2 weeks to respond

NEET PG 2025 counselling is lagging behind even last year’s delayed timeline, leaving students anxious and adrift. Adding to the uncertainty, the Supreme Court has today granted the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) two-week time to respond to the series of petitions seeking transparency in the NEET PG exam.

The prolonged delay in disclosure of NEET PG questions and the MCC counselling schedule has only added to the frustration of aspirants, especially since admissions for the previous batch stretched into early this year due to legal battles over the same demand — transparency in the exam.

As per the NEET PG latest update, the Supreme Court on Friday added to the uncertainty by granting NBEMS two weeks to file its reply on petitions seeking publication of the question paper.

Answers without questions hold no value: Petitioners

A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan questioned why only a limited number of candidates had approached the top court, when the exam was conducted on August 3. Counsel for the petitioners informed the court that over 2,000 aspirants had responded on a Google form, and reports indicated over 5,000 affected, showing that concerns were widespread.

The petitioners once again pressed for release of questions, stating that “without the full set of questions, the answer key holds no value”. They argued that transparency was essential to verify the results and fairness in the admission process.

“What exactly are you seeking here? Do you want to disrupt the counselling process?” Justice Pardiwala asked. Counsel for petitioners replied: “We are only seeking disclosure of questions with the answer key, in line with the court’s earlier judgement. The counselling process may begin anytime.”

During the hearing, Justice Pardiwala also urged aspirants to “just concentrate on their studies”. He had earlier asked whether they had approached the court “because they scored less marks”.

NBEMS cites miscommunication

Addressing NBEMS, the bench asked why they promised to publish questions and later retracted. To which, the board said it was a matter of “miscommunication” and the decision to release only IDs was taken to maintain confidentiality.

“This seems like a step back from transparency,” the court said.

The petitioners argued that the display of answer key, question paper, challenge facility are standard practice in many exams conducted in India, and that the request was “not unreasonable”.

However, NBEMS maintained its stance citing that the question paper contained “proprietary information”. It also claimed that it has complied with all directives issued by the Supreme Court.

The top court accepted NBEMS’ request for two-week time to file a response. “Ensure your reply is comprehensive,” Justice Pardiwala told the Board. The next hearing is expected after this period.

Also read Is NEET PG admission fair? Supreme Court yet to decide; cases in 5 states

NEET PG counselling delayed beyond 2024 timeline

This is the second consecutive year in which NEET PG aspirants have approached the Supreme Court seeking greater transparency. Last year, petitions were filed both in the apex court and in several high courts even after counselling had begun.

Despite the legal challenges, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) had announced NEET PG counselling for 50% All India Quota (AIQ) seats on September 20, with the complete schedule uploaded on the official website, mcc.nic.in, on November 1.

The court proceedings, which stretched for several months, ended up with the Supreme Court issuing 10 directives for the NBEMS to ensure transparency. Additionally, it had also directed the board to publish raw marks and answer keys. Further, it instructed measures like Aadhaar tracking and penalties for seat blocking.

More than a month after the NEET PG results 2025, aspirants face another 2-week wait before the petitions on transparency are heard again.