Amid the NEET-UG examination fiasco, the BJP-led central government has ordered a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities and paper leak. The central government had also shunted the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) chief to contain the damage. 

The NEET-PG entrance exam was postponed and the UGC-NET exam was also cancelled after it was found that the question paper took rounds on the darknet and Telegram.

The Union Ministry of Education released a statement that said, “Certain cases of alleged irregularities/cheating/ impersonation/malpractices have been reported” and “for transparency on the conduct of the examination process, the Ministry of Education, Government of India after a review has decided to entrust the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for comprehensive investigation.”

The press release also said that the central government has enacted the Public Examination Act 2024, to prevent unfair means in the public examinations.

The NEET-UG exam was held on May 5, 2024, across 4750 centres in the country and around 24 lakh candidates appeared for the exam. The results were announced ten days earlier, on June 4, than the expected date which caused speculations and the entire investigation began.

Here are the latest updates in the NEET, NET exam scandal

  1. The Centre removed NTA Director General Subodh Singh, placing him on “compulsory wait” in the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) until further notice.
  1. The Union Health Ministry announced the deferral of the NEET-PG entrance exam as a precautionary measure in light of allegations of irregularities in several exams. This decision followed the postponement of the Joint CSIR-UGC-NET exam. Pradhan clarified that the CSIR-NET postponement was due to logistical reasons and denied any paper leak.
  1. Pradeep Singh Kharola, chairman and managing director of the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), has been assigned additional charge of the NTA until a regular incumbent is appointed. 
  1. The Ministry of Education formed a seven-member panel to review the NTA’s functioning and recommend reforms. Former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan leads the panel and includes: Former AIIMS Delhi director Randeep Guleria, Central University of Hyderabad vice-chancellor B J Rao, IIT Madras professor emeritus K Ramamurthy, People Strong co-founder and Karmayogi Bharat board member Pankaj Bansal, IIT Delhi’s dean of student affairs Aditya Mittal, and Ministry of Education joint secretary Govind Jaiswal
  1. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan emphasized the government’s commitment to transparent, tamper-free, and error-free examinations, stating that a panel has been formed on exam reforms, actions have been taken against officials, and the case has been handed over to the CBI.
  1. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticized the Modi administration, claiming the education system has deteriorated and citing the postponement of NEET-PG as another example of the system’s failure.
  1. Allegations of discrepancies in NEET-UG surfaced after 67 medical aspirants scored full marks, with six students from a single center in Haryana. Controversy also arose over the awarding of grace marks to some aspirants, and over 1500 students have been given the option to retake the exam.
  1. The Bihar police recently detained six individuals in Deoghar related to the alleged NEET paper leak and arrested 13 people, including prime suspect Sikandar Yadavendu.