SC Allows NEET on 14 Oct for Students Who Missed Exam Due to COVID

According to education minister Dr Pokhriyal, around 85-90% students had appeared for NET 2020.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

The Supreme Court on Monday, 12 October, allowed the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) to be reconducted on 14 October only for those students who could not appear for it on 13 September, due to COVID-19 infection or because they resided in containment zones, news agency, news agency ANI reported.

According to reports, a bench headed by the Chief Justice of India passed the order, during which Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta informed the court that results would be out by 16 October.

Monday’s order was based on a PIL seeking reexamination for JEE Main and NEET 2020 candidates who had missed the exam, due to various hurdles presented by the coronavirus pandemic. 

The petition was filed by Shashwat Anand, a lawyer, who had urged the apex court to take suo moto cognisance on the matter after various reports claimed that a candidate was not allowed to take entrance exams as he reached the exam centre late by 10 minutes.

The Quint had spoken to a few NEET aspirants, who said that they had missed the medical entrance exam due to distant examination centres, lack of transportation, increasing coronavirus cases, among other reasons.

Following the single day exam on 13 September, Union Minister of Education Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal had tweeted that out of 15.97 lakh candidates, around 85 to 90 percent have appeared for the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) 2020.