Supreme Court says, Aspirants who dropped out between November (5-18) 2024 eligible for JEE-Advanced
The Supreme Court on Friday allowed students who withdrew from their courses between November 5 and November 18, 2024, to register for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)-Advanced.
A bench comprising Justices B. R. Gavai and Augustine George Masih issued the order while hearing pleas challenging the reduction in attempts allowed for JEE-Advanced aspirants from three to two.
The court observed that the Joint Admission Board (JAB), responsible for conducting the JEE-Advanced, had released a press statement on November 5, 2024, stating that students who appeared for Class 12 in the academic years 2023, 2024, and 2025 would be eligible for JEE-Advanced. However, a subsequent press release on November 18, 2024, restricted eligibility to students from just the 2024 and 2025 academic years.
The bench noted that some students, relying on the initial press release, dropped out of their courses with the expectation of appearing for JEE-Advanced. The abrupt change in eligibility criteria, it said, could not be allowed to harm these students.
Without commenting on the merits of JAB’s decision, the court directed that students who dropped out during the specified period based on the November 5 press release be permitted to register for the examination.
The matter arose from two petitions, one filed by 22 aspirants, contesting the reduction in JEE-Advanced attempts. The petitioners argued that they had left their college courses after the November 5 press release, which initially set the permissible number of attempts at three, only for the JAB to suddenly reduce it to two on November 18.
One petition, filed through advocate Sanjeet Kumar Trivedi, described JAB’s move as “arbitrary” and detrimental to students’ academic and career plans. The petitioners contended that the sudden change disregarded the expectations set by the earlier announcement and disrupted their preparation.
The Supreme Court’s decision allows affected students to register for JEE-Advanced while addressing the inconsistency in JAB’s announcements.
