The Supreme Court on Thursday extended the stay in place on the counseling process for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test All India Quota (NEET-AIQ) for the time being. The Centre told the Supreme Court that it will reconsider the eligibility criteria for the Economic Weaker Sections (EWS), which is currently set at family income of Rs 8 lakh per annum.

The bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud, Surya Kant and Vikram Nath heard the matter where the reservation for Other Backward Class (OBC) and EWS quotas in admission to PG medical courses has been challenged. In July, the Centre had decided to provide reservation to OBCs and EWS in All India Quota of medical/dental colleges in states.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that the Central government will review whether there will be an annual income limit of Rs 8 lakh for EWS or not. Mehta said this process will take four weeks.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare submitted that this decision will benefit about 1,500 OBC students in MBBS and 2,500 OBC students in PG every year. While 550 students of EWS category will benefit in MBBS and about 1,000 students in PG.

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The bench recorded,

“The learned Solicitor General who appears on behalf of the Union of India along with ASG KM Nataraj state that the Government has taken a decision to revisit the criteria with regard to determining the Economically Weaker Sections in terms of the provisions of the explanation to Art 15 of the Constitution inserted by the 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act. The Solicitor General states that a period of 4 weeks would be required for this exercise and pending its conclusion, the date of counselling shall stand postponed. This is in view of the assurance which was made at a earlier stage. We direct for listing the hearing of the proceedings on January 6, 2021.”

A number of petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the notification of July 29 of the Centre and the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC). In this notification, out of 50 percent seats fixed for All India Quota, a provision has been made to provide 27 percent reservation for OBC and 10 percent for EWS in NEET PG medical entrance examination.

The court will next hear the matter on January 6.

The Supreme Court on Friday set aside the Madras High Court’s observations that reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) in the NEET-All India Quota (AIQ) medical seats can be implemented only with the approval of Apex Court’s Constitution Bench.

A bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and B.V. Nagarathna was hearing the Centre’s plea challenging the High Court’s direction.

The bench said the Madras High Court was considering a contempt petition seeking implementation of OBC reservation in NEET-AIQ and hence, the observations on 10 percent EWS quota amounted to a transgression of its jurisdiction.

The top court noted that after the High Court found no contempt, it has gone into wider spectrum. “There the High Court has really erred… when you are in contempt jurisdiction, you just need to see if the order has been complied or not,” it said.

Appearing on behalf of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), senior advocate Kapil Sibal noted that the issue was complicated and that the High Court’s observation being set aside would have larger ramifications.

Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, appearing for the Centre, argued that the High Court ought not to have made the observations, while it was exercising its contempt power.

The Apex court clarified that it is not quashing the entire High Court order passed on August 25 or stating any opinion on its merit, but just setting aside the observations made with regard to the top court’s approval on EWS quota.

“We are not expressing opinion on the merits of the case since the points will arise in a bunch of petitions pending adjudication,” the bench said.

The Supreme Court directed the Centre to file a joint counter affidavit to the batch of petitions by October 6 and said it will be hearing the matter on October 7.

The Madras High Court had last month pronounced its judgment in the contempt plea filed by the ruling DMK over OBC reservation in all India medical seats.

The Madras High Court bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P.D. Audikesavalu had said that EWS quota was impermissible till the same wamms approved by the Supreme Court, as it would breach the 50% limit set by the Supreme Court for reservations.

“It is inconceivable that all states having government-run medical colleges would give up a percentage of seats to AIQ but would retain the right to enforce reservation in such quota as per the state norms,” the Madras High Court had said.

Aggrieved by this, the Centre moved to the Apex court on September 3 against the high court”s observation.

On July 29, the Union had decided to provide 27 percent reservation for OBCs and 10 per cent reservation for EWS in the all India Quota scheme for undergraduate and postgraduate medical/dental courses (MBBS/MD/MS/ Diploma/BDS /MDS).