NEET paper leak: Education Minister avoided questions, NTA did not give any concrete answer, opposition surrounded the Centre. india news

The government has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to investigate the alleged irregularities related to the examination. So far, one person has been detained from Nashik, Maharashtra in the case. Apart from this, Bihar Police has arrested 3 people in the case.Controversy erupted after reports of suspected malpractice emerged from Rajasthan and Uttarakhand after the May 3 exam. Investigators revealed that a document containing about 410 questions was allegedly circulated among students 15 days to a month before the exam. Officials said around 120 questions from the Chemistry section were allegedly similar to the actual exam paper. The officials further claimed that the material was distributed through WhatsApp groups just 42 hours before the exam.

what do officials say

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan refused to comment on questions related to the cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 exam. When journalists sought his reaction on the controversy after the Center canceled the medical entrance exam, he also refrained from answering.Meanwhile, NTA Director General Abhishek Singh held a press conference and said that the revised schedule for re-examination will be announced within the next 7-10 days. Taking responsibility for the incident, he said the paper leak “must stop with immediate effect”. He added that some of the questions in the PDF circulated among students before the exam “matched the actual question paper”.“We will tell you the schedule within the next 7-10 days,” he said.“There were four coded versions of the paper held on May 3. None of the papers were found in the market, and no leak has been established. The PDF that circulated had multiple questions, and some of them appeared similar to questions in the exam paper. So, I would not say that the entire paper was leaked. But I would definitely say that if even a single question matched our question paper, our commitment to zero tolerance and zero error is violated, and our entire process is compromised. We will take responsibility for this and take action accordingly.Addressing questions on possible internal involvement in the alleged paper leak, Singh said the agency had urged the CBI to identify and arrest all those responsible from within or outside the NTA, and ensure strict action to prevent such incidents in future.“Whether it’s someone inside or outside, whoever it is, we urge the CBI to arrest and punish them so that this issue can be rooted out,” he said.He said, “The paper leak should be stopped with immediate effect. This is not good for anyone. We take this responsibility because what happened is wrong and we are canceling the exam. We will conduct the exam again with assurance.”

The opposition asks whether this is ‘Amrit Kaal’?

Opposition leaders demanded the resignation of the education minister and called it a “poisonous period” for the country.“NEET 2026 exam has been cancelled. The hard work, sacrifices and dreams of more than 22 lakh students have been crushed by this corrupt BJP regime. Some fathers took loans, some mothers sold their jewellery, lakhs of children stayed awake all night to study and in return they got paper leaks, government negligence and organized corruption in education. This is not just failure – it is a crime against the future of youth. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said, every time the paper mafia gets away, while the honest students have to face punishment.He said, “Now, lakhs of students will once again bear the same mental stress, financial burden and uncertainty. If one’s destiny is not to be decided by hard work but by money and connections, then what is the point of education? The Prime Minister’s so-called Amrit Kaal has become Poisson Kaal for the country.”TMC MP Mahua Moitra asked the Center to take accountability for the incident and said, “NEET UG 2026 entrance exam was canceled due to question paper leak. There have been around 100 paper leaks and 50 re-exams in the last decade of Modi state. More than 20 lakh students were affected in this last leak alone. Accountability, anyone?”DMK chief MK Stalin suggested that re-conducting the exams would only lead to delays and said MBBS seats should be allotted on the basis of Class 12 marks as before.He said, “Re-conducting the NEET exam will only cause delay and confusion in the higher education aspirations of the students. Therefore, MBBS seats should once again be allotted only on the basis of Class 12 exam marks, as was done earlier.”SP chief Akhilesh Yadav expressed apprehension that how will the Center ensure that the paper will not be leaked if the exam is held for the second time.“What is the guarantee that if the exam is conducted for the second time, it will not be leaked again? This news has created immense anger and despair among lakhs of children and crores of their family members against the corrupt system of BJP. As long as the corrupt BJP government remains in power, the examination system will continue to operate on the basis of leaks. As long as there is BJP government, examinations will continue to leak; The examination system will be fine only after BJP leaves. BJP government means a failed government!” he said in a post on X.

Medical institute, students condemned this move

The Federation of All India Medical Associations (FAIMA) demanded strict accountability in the matter, saying the incident had “broken the confidence of lakhs of honest candidates”.“Such repeated failures highlight serious flaws in the system responsible for conducting one of the most important examinations of the country,” PTI quoted FAIMA national president Jaideep Kumar Chaudhary as saying.“We demand strict accountability and exemplary punishment for every individual or organization involved,” he said.NSUI protested outside the NTA office and demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.A post on

Students criticized NTA

Many NEET aspirants expressed disappointment and distress over the cancellation of the exam and alleged paper leak, with many raising questions on the functioning of the NTA.A student criticized the agency, calling it a serious administrative lapse and said it was difficult to understand how the paper could have been leaked despite claims of strict surveillance mechanisms, including GPS-tracked vehicles used to transport question papers.“If such a big agency like NTA claims that it has GPS tracked vehicles, then it is not good for this to happen. When this happens after working so hard, it is painful,” ANI quoted the student as saying.Another candidate said that the exam represents not only the dreams of the students but also the aspirations of their families.“It is a dream for children, parents and families, and to fulfill this dream, it is not just a matter of one or two months of hard work; many children have been preparing since class sixth or seventh. For those who score very well and are good in their studies, taking the exam again is not a big issue, but think about it: if you have to repeat a task again and again,” ANI quoted him as saying.“Even Prime Minister Modi and various agencies talk a lot about the mental health of children. Think about the children who worked hard and today they are being told that no, you have to take the exam again in a month or one and a half months. They were ready to live their dream, thinking that they will start college in just two months, but what happened today? And this problem is happening again and again; there is a way to solve it. We There are repeated demands that this examination should be conducted online. If this examination becomes online then this problem will be completely eliminated; The issue of paper leaks will never be there again,” he said.