NEW DELHI: Supreme Court refuses urgent listing of PIL challenging NEET-UG re-exam

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined an urgent hearing on a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the National Testing Agency's (NTA) decision to cancel the NEET-UG 2026 examination and conduct a nationwide re-test for nearly 22 lakh candidates. When the matter was mentioned for urgent listing before Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, it was submitted that the plea questioned the blanket cancellation of the May 3 examination and sought relief for lakhs of candidates who were not connected with the alleged paper leak.

However, CJI Kant refused to grant an urgent hearing, observing that petitions relating to NEET-UG 2026 were already being heard by a Bench led by Justice P.S. Narasimha. The CJI said that matters concerning NEET were being considered by another Bench and that the present petition would also be listed before the same Bench in July.

The PIL has been filed by Dr Mangala Kohli, a former Assistant Director General of Health Services, through Advocate-on-Record Abhishek Chandra Mishra.

The petition questions the NTA's decision to cancel NEET-UG 2026, conducted on May 3 and order a fresh examination across the country following allegations of paper leaks and examination malpractice.

According to the plea, while allegations of examination fraud require strict investigation and exemplary action against those involved, "the constitutional rights and legitimate interests of lakhs of bona fide candidates cannot be sacrificed owing to institutional and administrative failures attributable to the examination-conducting authority itself."

According to the plea, investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have so far indicated a "localised operational compromise through specific organised networks" rather than evidence of contamination of the entire examination process nationwide.

Referring to the decision to cancel the examination, the plea said that NTA had compelled "approximately 22 lakh students, including overwhelmingly bona fide and meritorious candidates having no connection whatsoever with the alleged malpractice, to once again undergo the rigours of a national-level competitive examination".

It further said that the decision had caused "severe academic, mental and financial hardship to lakhs of students" and disrupted the larger medical admission process across the country. (IANS)

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