2024 NEET controversy

The 2024 NEET controversy was caused by multiple discrepancies that occurred in the conduction of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) (NEET-UG) 2024 examination. The examination is one of India’s biggest entrance examinations in terms of applicant numbers and is the sole nationwide examination conducted for admission in undergraduate medical programs. It is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA).

The declaration of results sparked nationwide concern due to discrepancies including some candidates being awarded impossible scores and an unprecedented rise in the number of candidates scoring full marks. There were allegations of the use of unfair means and a suspected paper leak. Many candidates asked to be re-examined.

Background

See also: National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate)

Around 2.4 million candidates across India sat the examination on 5 May 2024. There had been a general trend of increased applicant numbers. The exams are undertaken for undergraduate admission to medical institutions. Per previous year statistics, out of 2.08 million students appearing nearly 1.14 million students were qualified.

Paper leak and use of unfair means

On 5 May 2024, the day of the NEET-UG examination, several social media posts alleged that the exam questions were leaked in advance. The NTA denied these allegations, but issued a public notice which said that an incorrect distribution of papers had occurred at an examination centre named Girls Higher Secondary Model Vidya Mandir in Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan, and some students left the examination centre despite the invigilators’ efforts to stop them. The notice also emphasised that it was an "isolated incident" and it had "not compromised the integrity of the examination process at other centres". The NTA reconducted the examination for 120 candidates who wrote the exam in the centre where the incorrect distribution of question papers took place.

Sellers reportedly charged prices ranging from ₹20 to 25 lakh, (around US$25,000 to 30,000) for the examination papers at Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan Mehta Vidyalaya.

Patna

A few hours before the examination, Patna police was informed by a whistleblower about a scandal involving the examination. The police registered a first information report (FIR) under Section 407, 408 (criminal breach of trust) and 120B (punishment of criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and arrested 13 people, including four examinees. On 11 May 2024, Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police took over the case after they found out about the involvement of several organized gangs in this case. The EOU found out that some medical aspirants had paid large sums of money ranging from ₹30 to 50 lakh to brokers involved in the racket for obtaining the question paper before the examination. The arrested candidates told the police where they got the question papers and confirmed that the questions in the actual NEET UG question paper were similar to the ones they got from the broker the day before the examination.

Godhra

On 5 May 2024, the district education department of Panchmahal district raided a NEET UG centre named Jai Jalram school in Godhra, Gujarat. During the raid, they seized a list of students from a school teacher who allegedly promised to help these students. A FIR was filed against the teacher and two others on charges of criminal breach of trust, cheating and criminal conspiracy. According to the police, the teacher who was also the deputy superintendent of the exam centre, asked the candidates to not answer questions whose answer they didn’t know and told them that he will answer them after collecting their answer sheets. The police also recovered ₹7 lakh from the car of the teacher who reportedly charged ₹10 lakh from each student for filling their answer sheets.

A few days later, it was revealed that 16 of at least 26 students whose names were on the list seized from the school teacher hailed from Odisha, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. Despite repeated requests by the investigating officer, the NTA did not provide OMR sheets of candidates who are involved in this case. An educational consultant and the principal of Jai Jalram school were also arrested by the police.

Result scrutiny

Suspicions of a paper leak increased when the NEET results were declared 10 days prior to when the NTA's information bulletin said they were due to be released, coinciding with the publication of the 2024 Indian general election. The NEET-UG scores were also released by the NTA only hours after the release of its official answer key.

In a merit list released by the NTA, 67 candidates had obtained the same top mark, with the previous highest total being 3 candidates in 2021. Eight of the candidates who obtained a perfect score came from a single exam centre located in Jhajjar, Haryana. A number of candidates also received marks that were theoretically impossible under the answer grid due to receiving grace marks.

One case of this happened due to an error in older versions of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks. When 10,000 candidates challenged the answer sheet, the NTA awarded grace marks to those who had followed the textbook. Forty-four of the top candidates were assisted by this decision.

Legal proceedings

Multiple applications have been filed with the Supreme Court of India asking for a re-examination in light of the allegations. The Supreme Court denied the petition to suspend the publishing of NEET-UG test results.

A separate petition was filed at the Delhi High Court, challenging the changes to the answers key.

Additionally, a public interest litigation questioning the reason behind the odd marks of 718/720 and 719/720, was raised at the Calcutta High Court. A separate PIL case requested a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into the matter.

On 8 June 2024, at a press conference, the NTA announced the Education Ministry would set up a four-member panel to reanalyse the supposedly awarded grace marks to 1,563 candidates.

Response

Following the announcement of the exam results, hashtags protesting the results began trending on social media, as well as students calling for an investigation into the examination process and urging a re-examination.

Several public educators and educational technology companies raised media debates and questioned the authenticity of the exam. Indian political party leaders alleged rigging and corruption and demanded probes into the exam process. Indian National Congress party leader Priyanka Gandhi questioned the government's ignoring of student complaints.

The president of the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee's media department, Mukesh Nayak, alleged in a press conference that the NTA had committed a bigger scam than the Vyapam scam and demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe.

NTA

The NTA investigated allegations of a paper leak prior to the exam, and issued a public notice, citing them to be "completely baseless and without any ground".

The NTA issued an official clarification notice dated 6 June 2024, refuting suspicions of a paper leak and justified the early results declaration, claiming it was not timed to coincide with the Lok Sabha elections.

The NTA's responses resulted in further anger and questioning from students and media outlets, who called the procedure a cover-up or a scam. On 22 June 2024, news outlets and media declared the postponement of NEET-PG exam from its prior date after probed irregularities.