SEOKeyword – Supreme Court Seeks Detailed Replies Over Tamil Nadu Super Speciality Seats Dispute
SEOKeyword – The Supreme Court has sought detailed responses from the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government regarding a petition challenging the proposed transfer of vacant in-service super speciality medical seats to the All India Quota for the 2025-26 academic session.
The Supreme Court has initiated proceedings on a petition filed by the Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association concerning 152 unfilled in-service super speciality medical seats in the state. The association has urged the court to prevent these seats from being handed over to the All India Quota during the ongoing admission process for the 2025-26 academic year. Taking note of the matter, the apex court issued notices to the Union government, the Tamil Nadu government, and other concerned authorities, asking them to submit detailed responses.
Court Raises Concern Over In-Service Doctors
A bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi observed during the hearing that doctors already serving in the public healthcare system deserve special consideration. The judges indicated that the qualifying benchmark for in-service candidates should ideally be lower because these medical professionals continue to serve government hospitals while also pursuing advanced medical education. The matter has now been scheduled for further hearing on July 15.
Background of the Dispute
The controversy began after an earlier order passed by another bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice P S Narasimha in the Tamilveni case. That order instructed the Tamil Nadu government to inform the Director General of Health Services about the availability of 152 vacant super speciality seats so they could be allocated through the All India merit list.
Following this direction, the Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association approached the Supreme Court seeking immediate relief. The association argued that these vacant Doctorate of Medicine (DM) and Master of Chirurgiae (MCh) seats should not be surrendered while the NEET-SS 2025 counselling process is still underway.
Association Seeks Opportunity for Eligible Candidates
The petition also requests permission for eligible in-service doctors to participate in the third round of counselling if the qualifying percentile is reduced below the existing 50 percent threshold after the completion of the second round. According to the association, such a relaxation would allow experienced government doctors another opportunity to secure admission into super speciality programmes.
Senior Advocate P Wilson, representing the petitioners, informed the court that a reduction in the qualifying percentile had already been permitted for postgraduate medical admissions. However, he pointed out that the second round of counselling for super speciality courses has remained pending because of the earlier judicial order. He further argued that the association representing in-service medical officers was not given an opportunity to present its views during the proceedings in the Tamilveni case.
Next Hearing Scheduled
After considering the submissions, the Supreme Court directed all concerned parties to file their replies before the next date of hearing. The court will examine whether the vacant in-service seats should remain with the state for eligible government doctors or be transferred to the All India Quota as directed earlier. The outcome of the case is expected to have a significant impact on the ongoing NEET-SS 2025 admission process and future policies governing in-service medical education.