NEET PG Admissions: Domicile-Based Reservation Violates Article 14, Says Supreme Court
NEET PG 2024 round 3 counselling seat allotment result is now available in PDF format including the vital details such as allotted quota, course, remarks and other details of the provisionally allotted candidates for admissions.
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The Supreme Court ruled today that domicile-based reservations for postgraduate medical admissions cannot be permitted, as they violate Article 14 of the Constitution. The SC bench, comprising Justices Hrishikesh Roy, Sudhanshu Dhulia, and SVN Bhatti, mentioned that such a reservation system is unconstitutional. "Residence-based reservation in PG medical courses is clearly violative of Article 14 of the Constitution, " the bench elucidated.
The Apex Court bench clarified that proposing domicile-based reservations for State quota PG medical seats is constitutionally unacceptable, stating that these seats must be filled exclusively based on merit in the NEET PG exam scores. In response to a reference, the three-judge bench reiterated the legal principles established in the previous judgments of the Pradeep Jain and Saurabh Chandra cases, as reported by Live Law.
However, the bench clarified that the verdict will not impact existing candidates who have secured the seats through their respective quotas. The judgment will not affect students currently enrolled in PG medical courses or those who have already graduated under the domicile category.
Reportedly, the SC bench mentioned, "We all are domiciles in the territory of India, and no state or provincial domicile shall exist. There is only one domicile. We have the right to choose residence anywhere in India and to carry out trade and profession anywhere in the country."
Further, the bench said that the benefit of reservation in educational institutions based on state quota could be given to a certain degree only in MBBS courses, but state quota reservation for specialized doctors in PG medical courses would violate Article 14 of the constitution.
