Probe into alleged irregularities in NEET-UG handed over to CBI: Ministry of Education

New Delhi: The Center on Saturday evening announced that the probe into alleged irregularities in the NEET medical entrance exam would be handed over to the CBI for further investigation.

The development came amid a flurry of decisions over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, including the removal of National Testing Agency (NTA) director general Subodh Singh and the creation of a seven-member committee led by former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan to reform exams.

“Some cases of alleged irregularities, cheating, impersonation and malpractices were reported in the NEET-UG which was held on May 5.

“For the sake of transparency on the conduct of the examination process, it has been decided after examination that the case will be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further investigation,” said a senior official of the Ministry of Education.

The government is committed to ensuring the sanctity of examinations and protecting the interests of students, the official said, adding that any person or organization involved in irregularities will face strictest action.

The exam was held on May 5 at 4,750 centers and around 24 lakh candidates appeared. The results were to be declared on June 14 but were announced on June 4.

Allegations of irregularities have led to protests in several cities, disputes and fights between rival political parties.

A fresh plea has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking directions to the CBI and ED to probe the alleged irregularities in NEET-UG.

The petition, filed by 10 students who had appeared for the exam, also sought a direction to the Bihar Police to expedite investigation into the matter and file a report in the apex court.

The top court had earlier sought responses from the Centre, the NTA and others on a series of petitions, including those seeking scrapping of the NEET-UG 2024 exam and a court-monitored probe.

The apex court had also stayed further proceedings on similar pleas pending before different high courts.

As many as 67 students scored a perfect score of 720, an unprecedented result in the history of NTA, with six from a center in Faridabad, Haryana, making the list, raising suspicions of irregularities.

There was also controversy over grace points given to students to compensate for lost time at six centers. The Center later told the apex court that the grace marks were being scrapped and such students would be given the opportunity to take a retest.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) will conduct a retest for these 1,563 candidates on Sunday.

The NEET-UG exam is conducted by the NTA for admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country.