The Supreme Court on Monday, August 17, rejected the plea filed by 11 students belonging to 11 states seeking postponement of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) examinations 2020.
NEET and JEE exams are scheduled to be held in September this year.
A three-judge bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said that the postponement of the exams will put the 'career of the students in peril'.
"Life has to go on despite coronavirus and the SC cannot put career of students in peril by interfering with the decision of the National Testing Agency," the apex court bench said.
The SC bench, which also included justices BR Gavai and Krishna Murari, said, "We find no merit in the petition." The petition is dismissed, Justice Arun Mishra said.
It further added: "You (lawyers) have demanded the opening of physical courts. But you want exams to be postponed. Postponement of exams is a loss for the country. Students will lose the academic year."
What the Petitioner's lawyer had to say
Petitioner's advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava said that there is a chance of coronavirus vaccine coming soon and he is not seeking an indefinite postponment of the exams. Even PM Modi said about it in his Independence Day speech. However, the bench found no merit in the case.
Meanwhile...
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for National Testing Agency, submitted that exams should be conducted, and adequate precautions will be taken.
Saying that exams will be held with adequate precautions, the SC bench took into the record the submission of Tushar Mehta.
Plea filed in top court
A plea was filed in the Supreme Court earlier this month to quash and set aside public notices issued by the National Testing Agency to conduct the JEE (Main) April 2020 exam between 1-6 September and the NEET on 13 September.
Citing the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, a plea was filed by Srivastava, on behalf of 11 students from 11 states, contending that lakhs of young students are likely to appear in the JEE (Main) April-2020 and NEET UG-2020 exam next month.
"The deadly COVID-19 pandemic has already affected about 20 lakh people in India and the situation is worsening by every passing day. Conducting the examination across India at such perilous time, is nothing else but putting lives of lakhs of young students at utmost risk and danger of disease and death," read the plea.
The petitioners argued that the best recourse at this stage can be to wait for some more time and let the COVID-19 crisis subside.
(With agency inputs)
