In a big blow to the Tamil Nadu BJP, the Madras High Court has on Tuesday dismissed the party's petition filed to challenge the NEET panel that was established by the MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government with the view of studying the impact of the national entrance exam on the poor and marginalized students in the state. Installing the panel was one of the key decisions made by Stalin after taking over the reign in the state after a decade, by ousting the ADMK regime. 

The panel will be headed by retired High Court judge Justice AK Rajan and it will analyze if NEET had an adverse impact on students from backward classes and the panel was tasked to provide recommendations and relief measures if it finds that the NEET is causing adverse impact on students. However, the BJP had slammed the DMK for forming the panel. Tamil Nadu BJP General Secretary Karu Nagarajan had filed a petition in the High Court and sought a directive from the court to repeal the panel. 

After the hearing, the High Court has on Tuesday said that the appointment of the panel is not an act of defiance to any order passed by the Supreme Court and said that it does not pose a challenge to the rights of the Union government to fix a standard of higher education. According to Bar and Bench, the high court bench has said, "Setting up of the commission does not amount to subverting any process of admission, far less an act of defiance to any order passed by the Supreme Court or even the remotest challenge to the authority of the Union." 

The high court bench further said, "The issuance of the notification does not exceed the authority of the state government. As long as the state government does not do anything to upset the procedure for admission to medical institutions as established by law, it does not call for any interference." The bench has asked, "How does the notification run contrary to the Supreme Court? They are not interfering with admission They have set up a commission, it will act on terms of reference and submit a report. It does not touch on the Supreme Court order." 

The high court has given a go-ahead for the panel by dismissing the petition filed by the BJP. Tamil Nadu is one of the states that has been opposing the national entrance exam and the abrupt implementation of NEET and its dominance across the country had heavily distressed the medical aspirants particularly students from poor and downtrodden backgrounds. The hasty introduction of the national exam had pushed several students to brace up the exam and several others to give up their medical aspirations. 

While the National Test had run into outrage initially, most of the states had later got used to the test, leaving the students to clear the burdensome gateway to acquire a medical seat in leading medical colleges and varsities. Tamil Nadu has been one of the states that furiously voiced against the test and it has largely been demanding the Center to repeal the National Test. 

In the recently-held assembly polls, DMK has promised to take measures against NEET and after coming to power, MK Stalin has formed a panel to study the NEET impact on the students in acquiring medical admissions. In a release after setting up the panel, the government said, "They (students and educationalists) demand the abolition of the entrance test which is against social justice. They want medical admissions based on Class 12 board exam marks as implemented during the previous DMK government headed by M Karunanidhi. The Tamil Nadu government has undertaken several legal battles." 

The release further said, "The committee will study whether the common medical entrance test (NEET) has affected the socially backward students in the past few years. If it has affected them, then the committee will suggest alternate admission procedures for the benefit of all students and possibilities for implementing these admission procedures and legal avenues. Educationists and officials also will be part of this high-level committee." 

Challenging the panel, BJP has knocked the doors of the High Court and the Central ruling party had eventually settled down for a setback after its petition was dismissed. According to the latest reports, MK Stalin has welcomed the court order in support of the panel and he had called the order the big blow to the BJP and ADMK. It must be noted that the Union government has on Monday announced that the NEET UG examination will be held on September 12.