The Supreme Court of India is set to review on July 8 a series of petitions accusing paper leaks and misconduct in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Under Graduate (NEET-UG) 2024 exam, which took place on May 5.
As per the schedule posted on the court's official site, these petitions will be heard by a panel comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra. Previously, the court had requested the National Testing Agency (NTA) to address the concerns raised in the petitions, which called for a new NEET-UG 2024 exam due to alleged paper leaks, stating that the integrity of the exam had been compromised.
The court emphasized to the NTA the need for a rigorous handling of any negligence in the exam's administration. On June 13, the government and the NTA informed the court that they had revoked the extra marks given to 1,563 candidates, offering them a choice to either retake the exam on June 23 or forfeit the additional marks. Out of this, 813 students opted to retake the exam at seven different centers.
Aspiring candidates had approached the Supreme Court, highlighting issues such as the leaked question paper, the awarding of compensatory marks, and irregularities in the NEET-UG question paper. Numerous petitions were filed, urging the court to invalidate the NEET-UG 2024 results and organize a new exam, citing paper leaks and unethical practices during the May 5 test.
The Supreme Court did not halt the NEET-UG 2024 counseling process. The NEET-UG exam, administered by the NTA, serves as the gateway for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other similar courses in both public and private institutions nationwide. The NEET-UG 2024 exam was conducted at 4,750 centers on May 5, with approximately 24 lakh candidates participating.
