The court has issued a significant ruling on a petition filed by medical students. While MBBS is available at any age, and you can fulfill your dream of becoming a doctor, medical colleges also have certain rules. The Allahabad High Court heard a petition filed by a senior citizen pursuing MBBS. This petition was filed by 70-year-old NEET candidate Ashok Bahar, and the court dismissed it. He sought a one-percent reservation or special quota for eligible senior citizens in MBBS and other medical courses. The court heard the petition, stating clearly that implementing such a system is a policy matter, subject to the relevant government and the competent legislature. The court dismissed the petition.
Learn about the full story!
This case concerns Ashok Bahar, a resident of Lucknow. He had taken the NEET UG 2026 exam. This matter came to light because he was at a very advanced age to take the medical entrance exam. He demanded special opportunities, i.e., special reservations, for senior citizens in medical education and filed a petition in the court regarding this matter. Ashok Bahar, in his petition, argued that since there is no upper age limit for senior citizens in the NEET exam, their interests should also be considered for admission to medical colleges. Based on this, he filed this petition, demanding reservations and special quotas for senior citizens.
What happened in the High Court?
As soon as Ashok Bahar filed his petition, his petition was heard. During the hearing, a division bench of Justices Rajan Roy and Manjeev Shukla flatly refused to interfere with the previous order. A single-judge bench had previously refused to issue directions on this demand. This means that a similar petition had been filed and heard before, and now another petition was heard, and the court refused to interfere with the earlier order passed by the division bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Manjeev Shukla.
The division bench heard the case and stated that there is currently no legal provision that could warrant the implementation of any reservation or quota for senior citizens. According to the court, the petitioner’s demand lacks the legal basis or authority to order the government to enact a special policy. Therefore, the petition was dismissed.
The court also clearly stated that a separate reservation or special quota for senior citizens may be under consideration. The petitioner can raise this issue with the competent authority and present his case, but given the current circumstances, the court cannot issue such an order, so the court dismissed it.
Ashok Bahar’s Demand
Ashok Bahar filed a petition in the court requesting that senior citizens be granted one percent reservation for admission to MBBS and other medical courses through NEET. He sought an order from the court. He argued that certain categories of medical candidates are granted reservations or special privileges. Therefore, he demanded that senior citizens also receive one percent reservation and that arrangements for senior citizens should be considered. During the hearing, the court agreed that a decision to implement a new reservation system cannot be taken immediately. The court stated that the relevant authorities must consider existing rules and policies before deciding on a separate quota or full-time reservation for senior citizens.
For now, the court declined to implement such reservations and dismissed the petition.
