NEET Discriminates Against the Poor': Madras High Court Asks Why Centre Can't Scrap it

The court observed it is impossible to get medical college admission without going for private coaching centres to clear the NEET exam.

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Monday observed that the poor cannot afford to attend private coaching classes for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) as the expenses go up to Rs.5 lakhs. The court observed that NEET is a disadvantage for the poor as only those who attend private coaching classes secure medical seats.

The court, while hearing the petition on NEET impersonation case, observed that while several UPA schemes were overturned by the Centre, why NEET was not reconsidered.

"Why can't the Centre cancel NEET like other systems implemented by the Congress-DMK regime? NEET discriminates against the poor. It is shocking that only those who attended coaching classes, paid as much as Rs. 5 lakh obtain medical seats," the court observed, adding that NEET was brought in to stop big money in medical admissions.

The court also came down heavily on the Tamil Nadu government for paying low salary to government doctors. The bench observed that the government doctors are paid just Rs. 57,000, while the state government teachers and personal assistants to high court judges get more than that.

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The case has been adjourned to November 7 and the bench has asked the CBI to respond on whether it has received complaints of NEET impersonation.

The NEET controversy surfaced in September after the Dean of Government Medical College in Theni received two emails stating that one Udit Surya, who was in his first year of the course, had failed to clear NEET twice before succeeding in the third attempt when he appeared for it in Mumbai. Another mail was sent two days later claiming the student pursuing the course was not the same person who had appeared for the test.

An internal inquiry conducted by the college authorities found a mismatch in the photographs of the NEET identity card and the student’s general identity card and a case was registered by Theni police.