The Supreme Court of India’s courtroom was extremely tense Monday morning. The issue on the table was huge. It was about the future of more than 24 lakhs of students. NEET-UG 2026 was a medical entrance exam which had been completely scrapped. The nation’s people were demanding explanations. PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe were the two Justices on the bench. NO, they were not suppressing their anger at all. They looked right at the lawyers representing the National Testing Agency. The NTA is the main body to conduct these large-scale national examinations.
One remark of Justice Narasimha grabbed everyone’s attention. He spoke plainly. He said the court was very sad. He wrote that the NTA had “failed to learn from its past mistakes. This was a reference to the mess 2 years ago. In 2024, the Supreme Court was forced to intervene in a large exam controversy. In those days they had laid down a lot of rules. They wished complete change in the way exams were secured. Again in 2026, the same crisis reared its ugly head, causing the bench to be disturbed. The judges ordered the NTA to file a sworn affidavit by this coming Thursday. They are seeking information on what has occurred with the safety measures they ordered two years ago.
The 2024 Committee and Missed Lessons
To fully understand the judges’ anger, you have to look at the recent past. The government appointed a high-level expert committee after allegations were made in 2024 of a paper leak. K. Radhakrishnan, former ISRO Chairman, was called in to run it. The original objective at the time was simple. The committee was meant to work out a way to eradicate cheating rings permanently. They were asked to resolve data security issues, update encryption techniques and fit in improved CCTV at test centres. The Supreme Court had wholeheartedly endorsed this committee. They wanted change in real tangible terms.
Now, it is late May 2026. As is clear the system is not working properly. The bench directed the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to provide copies of the petitions to his office as well. The court in particular called for an update from the committee for Dr. Radhakrishnan’s monitoring. The judges would like to see the exact steps taken to meet the 2024 recommendations. The court wants to know what happened to the 2026 exam if those security procedures were indeed followed. The patience of the Supreme Court is getting very thin.
What really happened on May 3?
This year’s medical entrance examination was held on 3rd May. Candidates were present in the examination halls of almost 24 lakh in the country. They believed that the trip was over. However, it was not to be long before things went wrong. Soon there were rumours of a leaky paper. After a while, investigators discovered a “guess paper” which had been circulated weeks prior to the test itself. There were approximately 410 questions in it. It appears around 120 of the chemistry questions were also on the real test. A PDF file was eventually discovered as the source of the leak. This was a highly shared digital file among candidates from Sikar district, Rajasthan.
By May 12, the government had no choice. They pulled the trigger. They cancelled all of the exam. The Central Bureau of Investigation immediately picked up the probe. They made a First Information Report. They leveled a charge of criminal conspiracy and cheating against the culprits. They also employed stringent provisions of the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act. Arrests began to be made in quick succession. A principal in Pune was picked up by the CBI. A Physics lecturer was also arrested for his alleged involvement in passing round the material. The inquiry is now being conducted in several states.
The Student Fallout
The top-notch lawyers were arguing in Delhi while the real contenders were grappling with the harsh repercussions. NEET preparation is a long journey taking years out of a teenager’s life. The majority of students shut themselves off from the world. They invest huge sum on coaching institutes and rent in cities like Kota or Delhi. At the end of the exam on May 3, lakhs of school-going teenagers breathed a sigh of relief. They believed that their troubles had ended. Nine days later a cancellation notice fell out.
This is now to be followed by a re-test on June 21. Students need to take time to mentally switch off. They can’t wait a minute to close their books, and recreate the super-high pressure cooker situation they just escaped from. Some candidates have been reported to have lost thousands of rupees in cancelled train tickets, flights, etc. Many claim that they have poor focus. They are burnt out. It’s a huge emotional burden to have to prove yourself a second time after a criminal network cheated the system.
What are the Petitions asking for?
The attorneys arguing the case before the Supreme Court are largely on behalf of the medical profession. One of the main petitions was filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association. The United Doctors Front filed another one. Advocate Tanvi Dubey advocated for them. They don’t want half measures, they don’t want a slap on the wrist. They want the NTA to be deprived of all its power to conduct NEETs again.
Medical associations are describing it as “total systemic failure”. They have demanded a change of NTA to a new independent institution. Almost 2.3 million students are having their fundamental rights trampled as these leaks keep happening, they said. In their petition they described the financial and mental devastation resulting from the instability. They also requested a completely new monitoring committee. They recommended it be led by a ‘retired Supreme Court Judge’. They’re looking to have cyber security experts and forensic scientists on board to carefully monitor the re-test on June 21. It is just that they are not confident that the existing NTA system will conduct the coming exam without any leakage.
