GOPAL SINGH Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking following reliefs:-

(2.) Facts of the case are that the petitioner is a meritorious student, who has successfully completed his senior secondary education by a duly recognized board, i.e., the Board of Secondary Education for Rajasthan (RBSE). The petitioner, having a strong academic inclination towards medical sciences, aspires to pursue a career as a doctor and is thus appearing for the NEET (UG) Examination for the year 2025. He completed his Class 10th education on 8/6/2017 (Annex.2) by passing the secondary examination with a total of 83.67%. Pursuant thereto, he chose science as his field in Class 11th and 12th and completed these studies in 2017-18.

(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner was successful in all aspects and was allotted a medical college for pursuing his MBBS course. The respondents were not justified in rejecting his candidature on the ground that he had not pursued Biology as a subject in Class 11th, although he had duly studied and passed Biology in Class 12th as an additional subject, part of his qualifying senior secondary examination. While drawing the attention of this Court to the Public Notice dtd. 22/11/2023 (Annex.11) issued by the National Medical Commission (NMC), he submits that, as per the said Public Notice, the petitioner was required to have Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology along with English, and even the additional subjects mentioned aforesaid were also held to be eligible for Class 12th. He further submits that since the petitioner, for the academic session 2019-20, took Biology as an additional subject alongside Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, the petitioner's candidature could not have been rejected solely on the ground that Biology must be a subject in Class 11th. He also submits that the NMC Guidelines 2025 / Information Booklet (Annex.R/1) (hereinafter called as 'Information Booklet') as well as the Public Notice dtd. 22/11/2023 does not mandate anywhere that a candidate is required to have studied Biology in Class 11th as well. He thus submits that the petition deserves to be allowed and the action of the respondents in rejecting petitioner's candidature by way of declaration on email as non-eligible for the said examination on the count that Petitioner has not pursued biology in Class 11th, may be quashed and set aside.