Tamil Nadu Assembly Passes Resolution Seeking NEET Abolition, BJP Walks Out

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on August 11, 2026, adopted a resolution urging the Union government to abolish NEET and allow admissions to undergraduate medical courses based on Class 12 marks. The move renewed the state's long-running opposition to the national medical entrance examination, with the BJP staging a walkout in protest.

The resolution, moved by Health Minister K G Arunraj, argued that NEET undermines social justice, equality and the rights of states in medical education. Tamil Nadu has maintained that a common entrance test disadvantages rural, Tamil-medium, government-school and socio-economically disadvantaged students, particularly those without access to expensive coaching.

The state has also advocated returning to a system where students' Class 12 performance forms the basis for medical admissions, with appropriate normalisation. Before NEET became mandatory, Tamil Nadu used Class 12 marks for medical admissions. Supporters of the proposal say this would give greater weight to sustained school performance rather than a single competitive examination.

However, replacing NEET with Class 12-based admissions could raise concerns over differences between education boards, very high scores and fair ranking among large numbers of medical aspirants.

The BJP opposed the resolution. BJP MLA Bhojarajan argued that the focus should be on improving NEET preparation and providing better coaching opportunities rather than scrapping the examination. He cited students from Tamil Nadu who have successfully cleared NEET and walked out after opposing the resolution.

The issue also sparked a brief controversy in the House after remarks by a DMK legislator, with Minister Rajmohan urging members to keep politics away from the matter. Speaker JCD Prabhakar subsequently expunged the remarks.

The resolution does not immediately abolish NEET in Tamil Nadu. It is a demand for the Union government to change the national framework governing medical admissions.