Kerala High Court cancels KEAM exam results

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday cancelled the KEAM 2024 results, citing procedural irregularities and last-minute changes to the admission prospectus.

Justice D K Singh set aside the rank list published on July 1 and directed that a revised list be issued in line with the original prospectus. The KEAM entrance exam, held from April 23 to 29, had its results published on May 14.

Controversy erupted when the state government issued an order—on the same day the rank list was released—amending the prospectus. The revised criteria altered the weightage ratio of marks in Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry from 1:1:1 to 5:3:2 and withdrew the weightage previously given to CBSE/ICSE students.

Petitioners argued that the abrupt change was arbitrary and unfair, prompting the court to rule that such modifications at the final stage were impermissible.

Reacting to the verdict, State Higher Education Minister Dr R. Bindhu defended the government’s decision, saying it was intended to benefit all stakeholders. “We believed the change would be a win-win. We will wait for the full verdict and discuss next steps, including an appeal, in Thursday’s cabinet meeting,” she said.

KEAM serves as the gateway for admissions to all professional courses in Kerala, except nursing. The court’s order is expected to delay the admission process for engineering, medical, and other professional programmes, affecting thousands of students awaiting enrolment.

(inputs from IANS)