NEW DELHI, 18 Jun: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that even if there is “0.001 per cent negligence” on the part of anyone in the conduct of the NEET-UG 2024 examination, it should be thoroughly dealt with.
Observing that students have to labour hard while preparing for these examinations, the apex court said that the litigation pertaining to the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate)-2024 examination ought not be treated as adversarial.
“Even if there is 0.001 per cent negligence on the part of anyone, it should be thoroughly dealt with,” a vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and SVN Bhatti told the advocates appearing for the Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA).
The NTA conducts the all India pre-medical entrance test.
The bench was hearing two separate petitions raising grievances, including on grace marks given to students in the examination held on 5 May.
“We all know the labour which the children undergo, especially in preparing for these exams,” the bench said, adding, “Imagine a person who has played fraud on the system becomes a doctor; he is more deleterious to the society.”
“Representing an agency which is responsible for conducting the examination, you must stand firm. If there is a mistake, yes this is a mistake and this is the action we are going to take. At least that inspires confidence in your performance,” the bench told the NTA’s counsel.
Stressing on timely action by the authority, the top court said that the pleas would come up for hearing on 8 July, along with other pending petitions, including those which have sought a direction to conduct the exam afresh.
It said that the NTA and the Centre would file their responses to these fresh petitions within two weeks.
When one of the advocates appearing for some petitioners raised the issue pertaining to a question asked in the exam, the bench said, “They (NTA and Centre) will respond to it.”
“Let us understand the purpose of your submissions. In these matters, we are prepared to sit up to evening,” it observed.
While hearing separate petitions raising grievances over the NEET-UG 2024, the apex court had last week sought responses from the Centre and the NTA on a plea for a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into allegations of question paper leak and other irregularities in the exam.
The Centre and the NTA had on 13 June told the top court that they had cancelled the grace marks given to 1,563 candidates who took the examination for admission to MBBS and other such courses.
They will have the option to either take a retest or forgo the compensatory marks awarded to them for the loss of time, the Centre had said.
The examination was held on 5 May across 4,750 centres and around 24 lakh candidates took it. The results were expected to be declared on 14 June but were announced on 4 June, apparently because the evaluation of the answer sheets got completed earlier.
There have been allegations of question paper leaks in states like Bihar, and other irregularities in the prestigious exam.
The allegations have led to protests in several cities and filing of petitions in several high courts, as also the Supreme Court. Scores of students protested in Delhi on 10 June, seeking a probe into alleged irregularities.
As many as 67 students scored a perfect 720 -unprecedented in the NTA’s history – with six from a centre in Haryana’s Faridabad figuring in the list, raising suspicions about irregularities. It has been alleged that grace marks contributed to 67 students sharing the top rank.
The NEET-UG is conducted by the NTA for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country.
Gandhi slams PM for ‘silence’
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for maintaining “silence” on the NEET issue and asserted that his party is committed to strongly raising the voice of the youths from the streets to the Parliament for ensuring strong policies against paper leaks.
The former Congress president said that the arrests made in Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana clearly show that there has been organised corruption in the examination in a planned manner, and added that these BJP-ruled states have become the “epicentre” of paper leaks.
“Narendra Modi, as usual, is maintaining silence on the tampering with the future of more than 24 lakh students in the NEET examination,” Gandhi said in a post on X in Hindi.
“The arrests made in Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana clearly show that there has been organised corruption in the examination in a planned manner and these BJP ruled states have become the epicentre of paper leak,” he claimed.
In its manifesto, the Congress guaranteed to secure the future of the youths by making strict laws against paper leaks.
“While fulfilling the responsibility of the opposition, we are committed to formulate such tough policies by strongly raising the voice of the youths from the streets to the Parliament and putting pressure on the government,” he said. (PTI)
