New Delhi

The judgment sets a crucial precedent, effectively mandating that PG medical admissions under state quotas must be determined solely on merit in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday held that domicile-based reservations in postgraduate (PG) medical courses are impermissible, declaring them unconstitutional for violating Article 14 of the Constitution.

The judgment sets a crucial precedent, effectively mandating that PG medical admissions under state quotas must be determined solely on merit in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).

“Residence-based reservation in PG medical courses is clearly violative of Article 14 of the Constitution,” pronounced a three-judge bench comprising justices Hrishikesh Roy, Sudhanshu Dhulia and SVN Bhatti.

The bench unequivocally ruled that state-imposed domicile requirements for admission to PG medical programmes contravene the constitutional guarantee of equality and cannot be sustained.

“We are all domiciles in the territory of India. There is nothing like a provincial or state domicile. There is only one domicile. We are all residents of India,” the bench stated, underscoring that Article 19 of the Constitution grants every citizen the right to reside, trade, and pursue a profession anywhere in the country.

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The court made it clear that the Constitution also bestows the right to seek admission in educational institutions across India, and that any form of domicile-based restriction at the PG level disrupts this foundational principle.