NEET-2018: SC stays HC order, no new merit-list for now
What's the story
Uncertainty is not yet over for NEET candidates of 2018. Ten days after the Madras HC ordered 196 additional marks to each student who had taken the test in Tamil, the SC has stayed the order.
The CBSE had challenged the HC's decision in the SC, arguing it would complicate the matter even further by causing more problems.
NEET
About the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test
NEET, conducted by the CBSE, decides admissions into graduate/postgraduate medical courses like MBBS, BDS, MD or MS in colleges run under the Medical/Dental Council of India.
This is the third time undergraduate medical college admissions are being decided through NEET.
Earlier, there was the All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT) and individual MBBS exams conducted by states and colleges.
Errors
This time, at least two TN candidates committed suicide
This time, protests erupted in TN as candidates claimed keywords in 49 questions had been translated wrongly. A petition was filed in the HC.
Citing examples, counsel Shaji Chellam said, "We found both the questions and their answers wrong."
In one instance, "Cheetah had been translated as Seetha in Tamil."
After results were declared, at least two candidates killed themselves for failing to qualify.
HC
CBSE is accepting even wrong answers quoting 'majority decision': HC
Delivering its verdict, the HC lashed out at CBSE, asking why it had declared results when the hearing was underway.
It asked CBSE if "any exercise was undertaken to ascertain English words in the syllabi (which) were incapable of being reproduced in Tamil."
"CBSE is accepting even wrong answers under the pretext of 'majority decision'," it added.
It then ordered a fresh merit list.
SC
CBSE, government protest HC order with three arguments
CBSE argued that following the HC order would take some candidates' marks beyond the total.
"Moreover, the NEET bulletin states that...in case of ambiguity in translation (in bilingual question-papers), the English version will be treated as final," an HRD Ministry told IE.
The government had also stated that issuing a fresh list would push out many from the current list, potentially leading to litigation.