The Centre submitted its affidavit to the Supreme Court today regarding the NEET-UG case, refuting allegations of widespread malpractice during the May 5 medical entrance exam.
Responding to queries from the Supreme Court during a hearing on July 8, both the Centre and National Testing Agency (NTA) were instructed to provide details on the extent of the alleged paper leak and proposed actions against those involved.
According to the affidavit, “The marks distribution follows a bell-shaped curve typical of large-scale examinations, indicating no irregularities.” The Supreme Court is currently addressing multiple petitions concerning purported irregularities in the exam, including calls for its cancellation and a fresh administration.
During Monday’s hearing, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud acknowledged the existence of a question paper leak as an “admitted fact,” emphasizing the need to assess its scope before deciding on any re-examination, given the 23 lakh students affected.
The affidavit emphasized the government’s commitment to a fair resolution that penalizes wrongdoers without burdening all candidates with a retest based on unfounded concerns. It also attributed the rise in student scores, particularly in the 550-720 range, to a 25% reduction in syllabus content, insisting this did not indicate widespread malpractice.
In another development, the Centre outlined plans for a four-round counseling process starting from the third week of July, with strict measures to cancel any candidate found to have benefited from malpractice at any stage of the process.
The affidavit concluded with a call for a policy-level decision by the government regarding further actions against beneficiaries of the question paper leak, impacting the ongoing counseling process.