Teen student secures victory in NEET case before Supreme Court, appears without counsel

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Fighting a case in court, especially in the Supreme Court, is no easy task. Even the most experienced lawyers are left sweating it out. However, 19-year-old Atharva Chaturvedi, a resident of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, has achieved something that is currently being widely discussed. Atharva scored 530 out of 720 marks in the NEET 2024-25 exam and secured an EWS rank of 164. Despite his impressive performance, he was excluded from the admission process due to the state government's failure to implement reservations for the economically weaker section (EWS) in private medical colleges. Undeterred, Atharva approached the Supreme Court directly through an online petition, where he made the courageous decision to represent himself without a lawyer.

The student's incredible confidence standing alone among senior lawyers.

On February 10th, the scene inside the Supreme Court was astonishing. Atharva's case was listed before a three-judge bench headed by Justice Surya Kant. Amidst a crowd of renowned and senior lawyers in the courtroom, this 19-year-old boy stood alone, fully prepared and confident. As the bench was about to rise, he mustered all his courage and said, "My Lords, I just need 10 minutes." Atharva then meticulously cited the 103rd Amendment and Articles 15(6) and 16(6) of the Constitution before the court. He explained to the judges that these legal provisions mandate 10 percent reservation for EWS in private and non-minority educational institutions.

The decision came in favor of Atharva, he will get admission in MBBS.

After hearing the powerful and factual arguments of this young student, the Supreme Court delivered a significant verdict in his favor. The court acknowledged that Atharva was denied admission due to circumstances beyond his control and that state authorities failed to properly comply with earlier judicial orders. The Supreme Court has strictly directed the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the Madhya Pradesh government to ensure Atharva's admission to an MBBS course at a private medical college. After this major victory, Atharva said that he was initially a little nervous, but he was confident that the law was on his side, so he simply followed the rules and got justice.