The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing on April 28 for various petitions challenging the decrease in the qualifying cut-off percentile for the NEET-PG 2025–26 exam. Advocates presented arguments both for and against the reduction during a recent brief hearing. The issue arose from a PIL contesting the decision to significantly lower the qualifying cut-off percentiles.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankarnarayanan, representing the petitioners, emphasized that there were enough qualified candidates to fill all available postgraduate seats, making a cut-off reduction unnecessary. On the contrary, senior advocate D.S. Naidu, supporting the reduction, asserted that lowering the percentile would not compromise academic standards.
The bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and Alok Aradhe refrained from delving into the controversy’s merits and deferred a detailed hearing to April 28. The PIL challenging the decision to reduce the qualifying cut-off percentiles for NEET-PG 2025–26 had been filed earlier.
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare defended the cut-off reduction, stating it was made after careful consideration by expert bodies due to a significant number of vacant postgraduate seats. The decision aimed to ensure better utilization of healthcare infrastructure. The Centre provided data indicating a substantial number of vacant postgraduate seats for the academic session 2025–26.
