Supreme Court Seeks Centre’s Response on Plea Over JEE-Advanced 2025 Eligibility
March 27 – The Supreme Court of India on Thursday sought responses from the central government and other authorities on a plea challenging the eligibility criteria for JEE-Advanced 2025, the entrance exam for the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
A bench comprising Justices B.R. Gavai and Augustine George Masih issued notices to the Centre, the Joint Admission Board (JAB), and other respondents, directing them to file their replies by April 21, 2025.
The petition, filed by 18 IIT aspirants who passed their Class 12 examinations in 2023, contends that while they are eligible to appear for JEE-Mains in 2025, they have been rendered ineligible for JEE-Advanced, scheduled for May 18.
Senior advocate Shadan Farasat, representing the petitioners, argued that the disparity in the number of attempts allowed for JEE-Mains and JEE-Advanced violates the principle of equal opportunity. The plea, filed through advocate Mrinmoi Chatterjee, noted that JEE-Mains permits candidates to attempt the exam six times over three years, whereas JEE-Advanced imposes a strict two-attempt limit.
The petitioners alleged that JAB’s eligibility policy for JEE-Advanced 2025 underwent an “abrupt and arbitrary” reversal. On November 5, 2024, JAB announced an increase in permissible attempts from two to three, but on November 18, it rescinded this decision, restricting eligibility to students who passed Class 12 in 2024 and 2025.
“This inconsistency in policy is irrational and discriminatory,” the plea stated, arguing that limiting the number of attempts disproportionately impacts thousands of IIT aspirants.
The petition referenced a Supreme Court order from January 10, which acknowledged that JAB’s November 5 press release initially allowed candidates from the 2023, 2024, and 2025 batches to take JEE-Advanced but was later reversed. The court had then ruled that students who withdrew from courses based on the earlier announcement should be allowed to register for the 2025 exam. The Centre and JAB are expected to respond before the next hearing on April 21.
