The controversy surrounding irregularities in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) has intensified following confessions from four arrested individuals that the question paper for the medical entrance exam had been leaked the day before.
Last week, student protests erupted nationwide over claims of a NEET-UG 2024 paper leak and the subsequent awarding of grace marks to more than 1,500 aspirants. Although the grace marks were rescinded later and a re-test offered, the Education Minister denied any paper leak.
The four men, arrested in Bihar, include Anurag Yadav, a NEET aspirant, Sikandar Yadavendu, a junior engineer at Danapur municipal council, and two others, Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand. They admitted to receiving the question paper a day before the exam and memorizing it. According to Anurag Yadav, the exact questions he had memorized were asked in the exam the next day. He confessed after being caught by the police.
Yadavendu stated that Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand claimed they could leak the question paper of any competitive exam for a fee of ₹30-32 lakh per aspirant. He agreed and arranged for four students to receive the leaked paper, demanding ₹40 lakh each instead. He was caught the next day with the students' admit cards during a vehicle check.
Around 24 lakh students took the NEET-UG 2024 exam for undergraduate medical courses on May 5. Despite the results being declared 10 days ahead of schedule, the process was marred by allegations of a question paper leak and improper awarding of grace marks.
The issue has become politically charged, with opposition parties accusing the government of rigging, paper leaks, and corruption. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan dismissed the allegations, claiming there was no evidence and accusing the opposition of spreading falsehoods.
In response to a batch of petitions regarding exam irregularities, the Supreme Court criticized the National Testing Agency for ensuring fairness for all candidates.
