Supreme Court Begins Hearing on NEET-UG 2024 Malpractice Allegations

The Supreme Court has started hearing over 30 pleas concerning the NEET-UG 2024 medical entrance exam, including allegations of irregularities and malpractices in the May 5 test. The National Testing Agency (NTA) argues that cancelling the exam would be counterproductive, while some candidates seek cancellation due to alleged widespread cheating.

The Supreme Court commenced hearing on Monday over 30 pleas related to the controversial medical entrance exam NEET-UG 2024, including allegations of irregularities and malpractices in the May 5 test and requests for the exam to be conducted afresh.

A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is also hearing a separate plea from more than 50 successful Gujarat-based NEET-UG candidates, seeking a directive to prevent the Centre and National Testing Agency (NTA) from cancelling the disputed exam.

Petitioners' lawyers began their submissions, calling for the exam's cancellation due to issues such as paper leaks, OMR sheet manipulation, impersonation, and cheating.

The Centre and the NTA, which conducts NEET-UG, have argued through affidavits that scrapping the exam would be 'counterproductive' and 'seriously jeopardize' lakhs of honest candidates without any evidence of large-scale breach of confidentiality.

The NTA and the Union education ministry have been central in media debates and protests by students and political parties over alleged large-scale malpractices, including question paper leaks and impersonation during the May 5 test.

NEET-UG is conducted by the NTA for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country. Allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks, have sparked protests in various cities and disputes between political parties.

On June 13, the Centre and the NTA told the court they had canceled the grace marks awarded to 1,563 candidates. These candidates could either retake the exam or forgo the compensatory marks given for loss of time.

The NTA announced the revised rank list on July 1 after releasing the re-test results held on June 23. A total of 67 students scored a perfect 720 marks, unprecedented in NTA's history, with six from a Haryana center, raising suspicions about exam irregularities. It has been alleged that grace marks contributed to the 67 students sharing the top rank.

The number of candidates sharing the top rank in the NEET-UG was reduced from 67 to 61 as the NTA announced the revised results on July 1.

(With inputs from agencies.)