Over 50 successful NEET-UG candidates from Gujarat, including several top-ranked students, have approached the Supreme Court to prevent the Centre and the National Testing Agency from canceling the controversial exam.

They have requested the Supreme Court to direct the Union Education Ministry to investigate and penalize those involved in unfair practices, such as paper leaks and impersonation, during the NEET-UG exam held on May 5 this year.

The new plea, filed by 56 students, comes just days before a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is set to hear 26 petitions seeking a re-test and an investigation into the exam’s alleged malpractices.

The National Testing Agency conducts the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses in government and private institutions across India. The NEET-UG 2024 was held on May 5 across 4,750 centers, with approximately 24 lakh candidates participating.

Allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks, have sparked protests in several cities and political disputes.

The pleas seeking the exam’s cancellation, a re-test, and a high-level probe are scheduled for a Supreme Court hearing on July 8.

The new plea, filed by Siddharth Komal Singla and 55 other students through lawyer Devendra Singh, urges the court to prevent the re-conduct of NEET-UG, arguing it would be unfair to honest students and violate their Right to Education under Article 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution.

The plea also requests that the Centre and the NTA identify and punish those who used unfair means and take action against centers that compromised NEET-UG 2024 guidelines.

Source: PTI