NEET is against 'social justice, equality, and rights of states': Tamil Nadu Assembly passes anti-NEET resolution

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Tuesday passed a resolution urging the Union Government to abolish the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and allow students admission to undergraduate medical courses based on the marks secured on the Class 12 public examination. The resolution was passed by the state health minister KG Arunraj, who argued that the fundamental structure of the NEET exam has widened social and economic inequalities. Every party, the ruling TVK, and its allies, including the Congress, the main opposition DMK, the AIADMK, Left parties and others, supported the anti-NEET resolution while the lone BJP MLA staged a walkout.

The resolution notes that NEET is against, "social justice, equality, and rights of states”, it favours the “proliferation of coaching centres that charge exorbitant fees”. The resolution argues that NEET diverts the attention of the children from the curriculum to coaching and takes away agency from the states. “This test gravely undermines medical education opportunities for rural and socio-economically disadvantaged students,” noted Anuraj while passing the resolution.

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Previously, the Tamil Nadu government unanimously passed the Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill, 2021 seeking an exemption of the state from NEET. But it remains pending without the President's assent.

The resolution also cites the continuous irregularities in the examination system, systemic failures by testing agencies, and the immense psychological pressure on students, which has tragically led to numerous student suicides, making it an imperative for the centre to scrap the framework.

Prior to the NEET framework, admission to government colleges required the All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT), which would fill 15 per cent of all quota seats, and the rest would be based on individual state-level exams. Institutes like AIIMS held independent tests. Then, the Medical Council of India (MCI) launched NEET; it was opposed by the state governments, and the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional, reviving AIPMT. In 2016, the Supreme Court reversed its decision and officially reinstated NEET mid-session, resulting in a chaotic implication. Since then it has been the only gateway to medical education in India.