NEET PG 2024: Supreme Court Issues Notice to MCC to Conduct Fresh Counselling for Round 3

The Supreme Court of India has issued a notice to the Medical Counselling Committee to conduct fresh counselling for round 3 amid anomalies experienced by several candidates during the round 2 counselling. The SC bench comprising Justices K Vinod Chandran and BR Gavai ruled in favour of petitioners

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The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India has issued a binding notice to the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) to conduct fresh counselling for round 3 admissions.

The Supreme Court notified the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) on February 04, 2025 about a request seeking approval to conduct an additional round three counseling for NEET PG 2024.

Supreme Court Issues Notice to MCC to Conduct Fresh Counselling

The Supreme Court today sent a notice to the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) regarding a request for the Committee to hold a new round three counselling session for NEET PG 2024. The bench that released this notice comprised Justices K Vinod Chandran and BR Gavai.

The request indicates that there have been cases of seat blocking by candidates due to a postponement in finishing round two counselling in Madhya Pradesh.

The petition submitted by three NEET PG candidates to the Supreme Court argues that the NEET PG AIQ round three counselling was “compromised” since it commenced before round two counselling was finished in several states, notably Madhya Pradesh.

NEET PG 2024 Counselling: What was the Appeal in Supreme Court

According to the petitioners, some state quota candidates who otherwise wouldn’t have qualified were able to secure NEET PG AIQ seats while also gaining superior seats through the state quota. They argue that this practice has put other deserving applicants at a disadvantage.

Due to this irregularity, three NEET PG aspirants filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court, claiming that the NEET PG AIQ round three counseling was “compromised” as it began before round two counseling concluded in various states, especially Madhya Pradesh.

Demand of NEET PG Candidates

As reported by the prominent media source, the petitioners requested a directive for MCC to conduct a fourth round of counseling for vacant seats that were previously held by candidates in situations where NEET PG round two had not been finalized.

In their appeal, they also asked that students eligible for AIQ round 3 be allowed to register for the NEET PG 2024 stray round of counseling.

The petitioner’s lawyer also stated that as the petitioner-candidates took part and secured seats in AIQ Round III, they are ineligible to join the stray round, where the superior seats have been allocated. When it was highlighted that the stray round has not concluded, the bench notified the respondent authorities and scheduled the case for February 7.

NEET PG 2024 Counselling Anomalies

During the hearing process, the lawyer representing the petitioners, clarified that the NEET PG counselling setup requires that state rounds can only commence once the corresponding AIQ rounds are finished, as AIQ seats are in higher demand. This indicates that the order is AIQ Round I, State Round I, AIQ Round II, State Round II, and so on.

It was argued that, with the exception of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, Round 2 was successfully finished in all other states. While Rajasthan approached the MCC for an extension, Madhya Pradesh did not follow suit, resulting in the commencement of AIQ Round III while MP Round 2 was still ongoing. Earlier, the Supreme Court had abolished the residence domicile based reservation quota from NEET PG exam.

NEET PG 2024 Counselling Vacant Seats

The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) allocated 24,314 seats during the third round of NEET PG 2024 counselling. This comprised 999 newly introduced seats, 15,902 seats from the virtual round, and 8,313 seats from the clear vacancy round. These seats will once again be up for grabs in the fresh round 3 NEET PG 2024 counselling process.

NEET PG Exam Overview

NEET PG is an entrance test for candidates eager to advance their post-graduate studies in medicine. Candidates can gain entry to MD/MS courses after passing the exam. The test is held annually and occurs online. Applicants may also utilize NEET PG scores to gain admission into postgraduate MBBS DNB programs.

According to the most recent information, India has 73,111 PG medical seats available. This encompasses seats for MD (Doctor of Medicine), MS (Master of Surgery), and Diploma programs. Union Health Minister J P Nadda stated that the number of seats has risen by 39,460 (127%) from 2013-14 (31,185 seats) to 2024-25 (73,111 seats).