The Supreme Court is not talking about third attempt for JEE (Advanced), but about freedom for dropouts

The Supreme Court on Friday granted relief to students challenging the decision to reduce the number of appearances for the Common Entrance Examination (Advanced) from three to two, ruling that petitioners who dropped classes between November 5, 2024 and November 11, 2024 will be admitted. for the exam.

The court, however, refused to interfere with the authorities’ decision to reduce the number of JEE (Advanced) attempts.

Senior advocate K Parmeshwar, representing the petitioners, argued, “Initially, it was decided to allow three trials, but within thirteen days it was withdrawn, which is arbitrary. On November 5, you promised that students would be eligible. Decisions were made on this basis that are irreversible.”

Attorney General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Joint Admission Board (JAB), defended the move.

“The decision was taken after it was discovered that students who had enrolled in regular engineering courses were focusing on JEE exams and not B.Tech classes. This decision has been taken in the interest of students and is a purely political decision,” he told the bench.

After hearing arguments, a bench of Justices BR Gavai and Augustine George Masih observed: “In the press release dated November 5, 2024, a clear promise was made to the students that those who appear for the Class 12 examination in 2023, 2024 and 2025 will be eligible for JEE (Advanced). If students, acting on this representation, withdrew from classes in the belief that they would be entitled to speak, the withdrawal of this promise on November 18, 2024 cannot be to their detriment.

“Under special facts and circumstances, without commenting on the merits of the JAB decision, students who withdrew from classes and interrupted their studies between November 5, 2024 and November 18, 2024, will be allowed to register for JEE (Advanced).”

The court clarified that it was not questioning the wisdom of the authorities. “If respondent No. 2 (JAB) had for good cause limited the area under consideration to two years instead of three years, no error could be found in the same,” the order said.

The court’s order was in response to a complaint by candidates challenging the reduction in the attempt limit for JEE (Advanced).

On November 5, 2024, JAB announced that students will be able to take the exam three times. However, just 13 days later, on November 18, 2024, the decision was reversed, reducing the trial limit to two.