 "Protest, NEET Protest, New Delhi Protest")
Agitators during a protest of the India Youth Front over the alleged irregularities in NEET 2024 results, at Jantar Mantar on July 8. (Photo: PTI)
The Supreme Court on Monday, while addressing multiple petitions for a review of NEET-UG 2024, said that there was evidence indicating the leakage of the question paper.
The apex court said, “There are certain red flags, 67 candidates scoring 720/720; in previous years, the proportion was very low. If a leak has been propagated through social media, then a re-test has to be ordered.”
The court said, “If the sanctity of the exam is lost, then a re-test has to be ordered. If we are unable to identify those who are guilty, then a re-test has to be ordered.”
“Let us not be in self-denial about what happened. Assuming that the government does not cancel the exam, what will it do to identify the beneficiaries of the question paper leak?” the court stated.
NEET-UG exam retake controversy
Allegations have been made regarding irregularities and malpractices in the test held on May 5, with calls for a retake of the exam. However, the Centre and the NTA, responsible for NEET-UG administration, oppose cancelling the exam.
The ongoing dispute has reached the political arena, involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who have engaged in heated exchanges regarding allegations and disruptions affecting students.
The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) is crucial for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and related courses across government and private educational institutions nationwide.
NTA, Centre file affidavits in Supreme Court
In response to legal petitions seeking cancellation of the exam, a retest, and a court-monitored investigation, both the Ministry of Education and the NTA have submitted separate affidavits to the Supreme Court. They oppose these requests, citing ongoing investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into cases across several states.
The Centre, in its affidavit, said, “It is also submitted that at the same time, in the absence of any proof of any large-scale breach of confidentiality in a pan-India examination, it would not be rational to scrap the entire examination and the results already declared.”
In a separate affidavit, the NTA said, “The cancellation of the entire examination… would be hugely counterproductive and significantly harmful to the larger public interest, especially to the career prospects of the qualified candidates.”
[With agency inputs]
First Published: Jul 08 2024 | 4:48 PM IST
