The controversy surrounding the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) has intensified with revelations from four individuals in Bihar who confessed to their involvement in leaking the medical entrance exam's question paper the night before the test.
Last week, nationwide protests erupted among students over accusations of a NEET-UG 2024 paper leak and the subsequent awarding of grace marks to more than 1,500 candidates. Despite the grace marks being revoked later and a promise of re-test for affected students, the Education Minister denied any paper leak.
The arrests in Bihar implicated Anurag Yadav, a NEET aspirant from Kota, along with his uncle Sikandar, a junior engineer at Danapur municipal council, and two accomplices, Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand. According to their statements to Bihar police, they received the leaked question paper the day before the exam and memorized its contents. Their exact claims matched the questions asked in the subsequent day's exam.
Anurag Yadav revealed that his uncle, Sikandar, instructed him to return from Kota after planning the paper leak. "I memorized the questions at night and found them exactly as I had studied during the exam. The police apprehended me afterward, and I admitted my involvement," Anurag stated.
Sikandar admitted that Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand proposed leaking the question paper for a substantial fee, claiming they could manipulate any competitive exam for ₹30-32 lakh per candidate to clear NEET. "I agreed to their proposal and arranged for four students. On the night of June 4, I facilitated the paper leak, asking for ₹40 lakh per student due to my own greed," Sikandar confessed to the police.
The controversy affected nearly 24 lakh NEET-UG 2024 aspirants seeking admission to undergraduate medical courses, culminating in premature result announcements amidst allegations of irregularities.
The issue escalated politically, with opposition parties accusing the government of electoral manipulation, paper leaks, and corruption. Rahul Gandhi of the Congress alleged that BJP-ruled states were at the center of the paper leak controversy.
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan dismissed these accusations last week, asserting no evidence of foul play while accusing the opposition of disseminating falsehoods.
The Supreme Court, in response to multiple petitions regarding the NEET irregularities, criticized the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Tuesday, urging fair treatment for all candidates and demanding stringent measures to prevent future mishaps.