Supreme Court issues notice to NTA over NEET-UG Exam row
The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the Centre and the NTA, or National Testing Agency, in response to a petition seeking to cancel the results of the NEET-UG 2024 – an ultra-competitive entrance test for undergraduate medical courses – following claims that the paper had been leaked.
“It is not that simple… that because you have done it (held the exam) it is sacrosanct,” the court stated to the NTA. “Sanctity of (the examination) has been affected… so we need answers.”
Matter listed for further hearing on July 8
However, the court stated that admissions counselling would continue. Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah stated, “We will not stop counselling.” The case was then rescheduled for July 8 and will be heard with a plea submitted before Chief Justice DY Chandrachud.
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The court was hearing a new petition in the ongoing dispute over the NEET-UG 2024 results, which alleged score anomalies and preferential treatment for select students.
The petition requested that the scores from the May 5 exam be canceled. The petition also requested that a new exam be held.
The petitioners, from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, have asserted variances in the grant of grace marks, for which they say there is “no defined logic,” and have called the court’s attention to “statistically impossible” numbers, including students who scored the maximum – 720 out of 720.
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“There has no defined logic for grace marks given (and) no list has been shared as per given grace marks. Moreover, the reason for awarding grace marks is ‘wastage of time’… but this was never disclosed in information bulletin before the exam,” the petitioners claimed.
The petitioners also cited the fact that 67 students from one coaching center received a perfect score of 720, as well as the fact that a provisional answer key given by the NTA was challenged by over 13,000 students since the problem pointed to a different answer.
The appeal emphasized the hazards of cheating in a medical test, saying, “This field requires a deep understanding of scientific and medical knowledge… cheating or using unfair means to pass an exam can lead to a lack of competence and endanger the lives of patients.”
The petitioners further stated that exam cheating “undermines the principles of meritocracy and equal opportunities, which are essential for social mobility and fairness in society”.
