The Supreme Court acknowledged on July 8 that a leak occurred in the NEET UG 2024 examination. However, the decision to order a retest depends on whether the breach was systemic and compromised the entire process, and whether it’s possible to identify those who benefited from the fraud versus unaffected students.
The Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud remarked that the sanctity of the examination has been breached and compromised, which is undeniable. Additionally, he raised the question regarding the extent of the breach while addressing petitions for and against the cancellation of the May 5 NEET UG exams due to paper leak allegations.
The Supreme Court bench, led by CJI Chandrachud and including Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, expressed that it would be speculative to assume, without evidence from the government and its agencies, that all 23 lakh students or a significant portion were involved in the fraud.
The Supreme Court scheduled the next hearing for July 11, to decide based on the merits after receiving responses from the government, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and the National Testing Agency (NTA). The NTA administers the NEET UG exams, while the CBI investigates the alleged leaks. The court ordered the Centre, the NTA, and the CBI to submit their affidavits by 5 pm on July 10 and share these with the petitioners.
Picture Credit – www.livelaw.in
