NEET PG 2025: SC to hear plea on transgender reservation next week; petitioners seek horizontal reservation

The Supreme Court will next week hear a plea on reservations for transgender candidates in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-PG (NEET-PG) 2025. The petition seeks two seats in the All India quota. It also asks for one seat each in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. NEET PG Counselling 2025 LIVE

As reported by LiveLaw, the bench comprising Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice K Vinodchandran heard the plea, which challenges the NEET-PG notification for not providing counselling and seat allocation for transperson candidates.

The petitioners, who belong to the transgender community, have asked the Court to ensure horizontal reservation by reserving 1 per cent seats across categories in postgraduate medical admissions.

Senior advocate Indira Jaising, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that despite the ruling in NALSA v. Union of India, neither the Union nor the states have implemented specific reservations for transgender persons. She urged the Court to pass an “innocuous order” directing allocation of a few seats in the current admission cycle.

NEET PG 2025: Chief justice flags admission uncertainty

The Chief Justice, however, flagged concerns, cautioning that setting aside seats at this stage could create uncertainty in the admission process. “We cannot keep seats everywhere in limbo, you are saying two seats in the All India Quota, 2 in the state quota,” he noted, as reported by LiveLaw.

The petition challenges the NEET-PG notification on the ground that it does not provide counselling options for transgender candidates. The bench was informed that while undergraduate counselling has already commenced, postgraduate counselling is yet to begin.

As per LiveLaw, the first petitioner, Kiran A.R., who did not appear for the NEET-PG 2025 exam, has withdrawn their petition. The Court disposed of this petition, while the case will continue for the remaining petitioners.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear petitions on NEET PG 2025 transparency on September 19. Aspirants and the United Doctors Front allege National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) issued the answer key with only question IDs, making it impossible to verify marks. They demand full disclosure, while NBEMS cites exam security.