Supreme Court Upholds OBC, EWS Reservations in NEET for 2021-22: Nunes vs. Union of India (2022)

Date of the Judgment: January 7, 2022
Citation: (2022) INSC 12
Judges: Dr Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, J and AS Bopanna, J
Can reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) be implemented in the All India Quota (AIQ) seats for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)? The Supreme Court of India addressed this crucial question in a batch of petitions challenging a notice issued by the Directorate General of Health Services. The court’s interim order allowed the implementation of these reservations for the 2021-2022 academic year, while deferring the final decision on the EWS criteria. This judgment was delivered by a two-judge bench of Dr Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, J and AS Bopanna, J.

Case Background

The case originated from a notice issued on July 29, 2021, by the Directorate General of Health Services, implementing a 27% reservation for OBC (non-creamy layer) and a 10% reservation for EWS in the 15% undergraduate and 50% postgraduate All India Quota (AIQ) seats for NEET. This notice was to take effect from the 2021-2022 admission year. The petitioners, who were doctors who had appeared for the NEET-PG 2021 examination, challenged the validity of this notice. The petitions were filed on August 24, 2021, and the Supreme Court issued notice on September 6, 2021. The NEET-PG results were announced on September 28, 2021.

Timeline

Course of Proceedings

The petitions were initially filed on August 24, 2021, challenging the notice dated July 29, 2021. The Supreme Court issued notice on September 6, 2021. After the NEET-PG results were declared on September 28, 2021, arguments were partly heard on October 7, 2021. The Court raised concerns about the EWS criteria, particularly the Rs 8 lakh income cut-off, and sought clarifications from the Union Government on October 21, 2021. The Union Government deferred counselling on October 25, 2021, and submitted an affidavit justifying the EWS criteria on October 26, 2021. Subsequently, the Union Government decided to revisit the EWS criteria and formed a Committee on November 30, 2021. The Committee submitted its report on December 31, 2021, recommending that the existing criteria be retained for the 2021-2022 admission year.

Legal Framework

The judgment pertains to the implementation of reservations for OBC and EWS categories in the All India Quota (AIQ) seats for NEET, based on a notice issued by the Directorate General of Health Services. The notice implements a 27% reservation for Other Backward Classes (non-creamy layer) and a 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Section in 15% of undergraduate and 50% of postgraduate AIQ seats. The legal framework involves the interpretation and application of constitutional provisions related to reservations, specifically for socially and educationally backward classes and economically weaker sections. The judgment also considers the criteria for identifying EWS as notified by O.M 36039/1/2019.

Arguments

The petitioners, represented by Senior Counsel Mr. Arvind Datar, Mr. Shyam Divan, and Mr. Anand Grover, challenged the validity of the OBC and EWS reservations in the AIQ seats. They argued that there cannot be any reservation for the OBC and EWS category in the AIQ seats in NEET -PG and that the criteria for the determination of the EWS category notified by O.M 36039/1/2019 was unconstitutional.

The respondents, represented by the Solicitor General Mr. Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General Mr. Nataraj, defended the reservations. They argued that the criteria was adopted after due deliberation within the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and all the concerned stakeholders. They also submitted that the Union Government has taken a considered decision to revisit the criteria for determining the EWS and requested four weeks to complete this exercise.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, represented by Mr. P Wilson, and the State of Tamil Nadu, represented by Mr. Mariarputham, also presented arguments supporting the reservations.

The arguments of the petitioners can be broken down into the following sub-arguments:

• The notice dated 29 July 2021 is unconstitutional.
• There cannot be any reservation for the OBC and EWS category in the AIQ seats in NEET -PG.
• The criteria for the determination of the EWS category notified by O.M 36039/1/2019 was unconstitutional.

The arguments of the respondents can be broken down into the following sub-arguments:

• The criteria was adopted after due deliberation within the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and all the concerned stakeholders.
• The Union Government has taken a considered decision to revisit the criteria for determining the EWS.

Issues Framed by the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court did not explicitly frame the issues in a separate section in this interim order. However, the issues that were considered by the court were:

• Whether the OBC and EWS reservations can be implemented in the AIQ seats for NEET for the academic year 2021-2022.
• Whether the criteria for determining the EWS category as notified by O.M 36039/1/2019 is valid.

Treatment of the Issue by the Court

Authorities

The judgment does not explicitly mention specific cases or books that the court relied upon for this interim order. However, the court did consider the following:

• The notice issued by the Directorate General of Health Services on July 29, 2021, implementing the OBC and EWS reservations.
• O.M 36039/1/2019, which notified the criteria for identifying EWS.
• The report of the Pandey Committee, which was formed to review the EWS criteria.

Judgment

The Supreme Court issued an interim order on January 7, 2022, allowing the implementation of the OBC and EWS reservations for the 2021-2022 academic year. The Court accepted the recommendation of the Pandey Committee to use the existing EWS criteria as notified by O.M 2019 for the current admission year. The Court also directed that counselling for NEET-PG 2021 and NEET-UG 2021 be conducted by giving effect to the 27% reservation for OBC and 10% reservation for EWS in the AIQ seats. The validity of the EWS criteria was kept subject to the final result of the petitions.

What weighed in the mind of the Court?

The Supreme Court’s decision was primarily influenced by the need to avoid disruption of the admission process for the 2021-2022 academic year. The Court recognized the urgency of commencing the counselling process and accepted the recommendation of the Pandey Committee to use the existing EWS criteria for the current year. The Court also considered the fact that the Union Government had already taken a decision to revisit the EWS criteria, and therefore, the validity of the existing criteria was kept subject to the final result of the petitions.

The Court’s reasoning can be summarized as follows:

The Court stated:

• “We accept the recommendation of the Pandey Committee that the criteria which have been stipulated in OM 2019 be used for 2021-2022 in order to ensure that the admission process is not dislocated.”
• “Counselling on the basis of NEET-PG 2021 and NEET-UG 2021 shall be conducted by giving effect to the reservation as provided by the notice dated 29 July 2021, including the 27 per cent reservation for the OBC category and 10 per cent reservation for EWS category in the AIQ seats.”
• “The validity of the criteria determined by the Pandey Committee for identification of EWS would prospectively for the future be subject to the final result of the petitions.”

There were no dissenting opinions in this interim order.

Key Takeaways

✓ The Supreme Court has allowed the implementation of OBC and EWS reservations in the All India Quota seats for NEET for the 2021-2022 academic year.

✓ The existing EWS criteria as notified by O.M 2019 will be used for the 2021-2022 academic year, but its validity is subject to the final result of the petitions.

✓ The counselling process for NEET-PG 2021 and NEET-UG 2021 will commence based on these reservations.

Directions

The Supreme Court directed that:

• The criteria stipulated in OM 2019 be used for 2021-2022 for EWS reservations.
• Counselling for NEET-PG 2021 and NEET-UG 2021 be conducted by giving effect to the 27% reservation for the OBC category and 10% reservation for EWS category in the AIQ seats.
• The validity of the EWS criteria would be subject to the final result of the petitions.
• The petitions shall be listed for final hearing on the validity of the EWS criteria in the third week of March 2022.

Development of Law

The ratio decidendi of this interim order is that the OBC and EWS reservations can be implemented in the AIQ seats for NEET for the 2021-2022 academic year, using the existing EWS criteria, to avoid disruption of the admission process. The validity of the EWS criteria is subject to the final outcome of the petitions. There is no change in the previous position of law, but this interim order allows the implementation of the reservations for the current academic year.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court’s interim order in the case of Neil Aurelio Nunes & Ors. vs. Union of India & Ors. upheld the implementation of OBC and EWS reservations in NEET for the 2021-2022 academic year. The Court allowed the use of the existing EWS criteria for the current admission year, while keeping its validity subject to the final outcome of the petitions. This decision was made to ensure that the admission process was not delayed. The final decision on the validity of the EWS criteria will be decided in the final hearing.