NEET-UG : Supreme Court To Hear Plea Seeking Alternative Verification Methods For Candidates With Disabilities
The Supreme Court is set to hear on September 21 whether alternative methods of verification of identity can be used in a plea by a specially abled NEET candidate.A bench comprising Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe heard Senior Advocate Gopal Shankaranarayanan(for petitioner) on the interim relief on whether the petitioner can be allowed to appear for the examination using...
The Supreme Court is set to hear on September 21 whether alternative methods of verification of identity can be used in a plea by a specially abled NEET candidate.
A bench comprising Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe heard Senior Advocate Gopal Shankaranarayanan(for petitioner) on the interim relief on whether the petitioner can be allowed to appear for the examination using alternative proof of identity.
It may be on April 30, days before the NEET-UG 2026 examination, the National Testing Agency gave an undertaking to the Supreme Court that Petitioner could appear at her examination centre with an alternative proof of identity, certified by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate or by the Principal of the school she last attended.
On the strength of that undertaking, the Court disposed of her application for interim directions.
However, it has kept the larger issue regarding alternative methods of verification of identity pending and has asked the senior counsel to assist the Court.
It ordered: "We request Mr. Gopal Shankaranarayanan, learned senior counsel to assist us in the matter as important issues arise for consideration in the present petition. List on 21.09.2026."
Muazzama Tanveer, the petitioner, is having a condition namely, Adermatoglyphia, in which the skin ridges never develop that forms fingerprint. It has no bearing on her health, intelligence or ability, it only defeats systems of identification that depend on scanning a fingerprint.
As per the petition, that became a serious practical problem when she appeared for NEET-UG 2025, the national medical entrance examination, on 4 May 2025. Her examination centre had no way of verifying her identity other than a biometric fingerprint scanner, which could not read her fingers. She reported on time but was permitted to enter the examination hall only after a delay of roughly 30 minutes, and was given no additional time to make up for it.
The lost time told directly on her result, she scored 321 out of 720, a result that did not secure her a seat in any government medical college, notwithstanding a strong academic record.
She challenged this before the Allahabad High Court, seeking a fresh examination and a direction to the concerned authorities to adopt an alternative method of identity verification for candidates in her position. The High Court dismissed the petition on 26 November 2025. She then approached the Supreme Court, which issued notice.
Case Details: MUAZZAMA TANVEER v UNION OF INDIA & ORS|Special Leave to Appeal (C) No(s). 2737/2026
Appearances: For Petitioner(s) :Mr. Gopal Sankaranarayanan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Dawneesh Shaktivats, AOR Mr. Mohd Yasin, Adv. Ms. Swati Khanna, Adv. Mr. Aayushman Aggarwal, Adv. Mr. Pradyut Kashyap, Adv. Mr. Aman Sabir Saifi, Adv. Ms. Himanshi Mehta, Adv. Ms. Nikita Arora, Adv. Mr. Kaustubh Khera, Adv.
For Respondent(s) :Mr. Ankit Goel, AOR Mr. Varun Yadav, Adv. Ms. Pankhuri Shrivastava, Adv. Ms. Neelam Sharma, AOR Mr. Rajeev Sharma, Adv. Mr. Atreya Gc, Adv. Mr. Mukul, Adv