Centre defends NEET-UG 2024 integrity, denies mass malpractice in affidavit to Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Union government on Wednesday filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court in response to petitions alleging irregularities in the NEET-UG medical entrance exam conducted on May 5. The affidavit denies any mass malpractice and provides insights from an IIT Madras report.

During a hearing on Monday, July 8, the Supreme Court instructed the Centre and National Testing Agency (NTA) to submit their responses regarding the extent of the alleged paper leak and measures to isolate wrongdoers from legitimate candidates.

No indication of mass malpractice

The government's affidavit includes findings from an IIT Madras data analytics report on the NEET-UG exam. The report concludes that there is "no indication of mass malpractice" and that the marks distribution follows a standard bell curve observed in large-scale exams.

NEET-UG 2024: Centre files affidavit in the Supreme Court denying any mass malpractice in the exam.

Centre says that the data analytics done by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras shows that there is neither any indication of mass malpractice nor a localized set of…

— ANI (@ANI) July 10, 2024

67 students with perfect 720 marks 

The allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks and discrepancies in score normalization, have sparked protests and political uproar across India. An unprecedented 67 students initially scored a perfect 720, with suspicions of irregularities arising from six top scorers being from a single centre in Haryana. 

Ensuring fairness in the examination process

The Centre assured that it is taking comprehensive measures to ensure fairness in the examination process. It emphasized that candidates found guilty of malpractice will face cancellation of their candidature, even during the upcoming counselling rounds scheduled to commence in late July.

Government establishes expert committee

In a bid to bolster the integrity of future examinations, the government has set up a distinguished committee of experts. Chaired by Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, former ISRO Chairman and current Chairman of the Board of Governors at IIT Kanpur, the committee will propose strategies aimed at fortifying transparency and reliability in upcoming examinations.