'Sanctity of NEET-UG exam affected, need answers': Supreme Court seeks NTA’s response to paper leak allegations

Satya Prakash

New Delhi, June 11

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to stay the counselling for admissions to medical colleges even as it asked the Centre to respond to petitions seeking cancellation of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) undergraduate (UG) Examination 2024 over alleged paper leak.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) conducted NEET-UG Exam 2024 on May 5. Following declaration of its results on June 4, counselling of successful candidates for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions is to take place across India.

A Vacation Bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice A Amanullah issued notices to the Centre and the NTA on petitions filed by Shivangi Mishra and other medical admission aspirants seeking cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 and a probe into the alleged paper leak. Mishra has demanded a fresh examination.

“It is not that simple… because you have done it’s sacrosanct. Sanctity has been affected, so we need answers,” Justice Amanullah told the NTA counsel.

Despite repeated requests by the petitioner’s counsel, the Bench didn’t agree to stop counselling. “We will not stop the counselling. If you argue further, we will dismiss this,” the Bench said, posting the matter for further hearing on July 8.

On May 17, a Bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud had refused to stay the publication of NEET-UG 2024 results. However, it had issued notice on that petition and posted the matter for hearing in July. Now both the petitions would be heard together.

On behalf of the petitioner, advocate Mathews J Nedumpara demanded a stay of the counselling. However, the Bench said, “Let the counselling start, we are not stopping the counselling,” Justice Nath said.

The petitioners alleged that ‘paper leak’ gave an undue advantage to some candidates over others who wrote the examination in a fair manner.