The Supreme Court today, Monday, July 1, 2024, posted for hearing after two weeks a plea alleging OMR sheet manipulation in the controversy-ridden National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG), 2024. The plea came up for hearing before a vacation bench of Justice CT Ravikumar and Justice Manoj Misra.

According to PTI, the counsel appearing for the petitioner, who had taken the medical entrance exam, alleged that his OMR sheet was swapped. The bench told the counsel that the petitioner was seeking permission to appear in the retest that was held on June 23.

"The exam (re-test) is over on June 23," the bench said. The petitioner's counsel said several other petitions alleging irregularities and also seeking cancellation of NEET-UG, 2024, were pending before the apex court.

The bench initially said it would list the plea for hearing next week. "If you are fortunate, then you will have some order in the other matter," it said. However, the counsel appearing for the National Testing Agency (NTA) urged the bench that the plea be listed for hearing after two weeks. Therefore, the apex court posted the matter for hearing after two weeks.

While hearing a separate petition on June 27, the top court had asked the NTA to apprise it of whether there was any time limit for raising grievances regarding the OMR sheets provided to the candidates who appeared in NEET-UG, 2024. The other pending petitions related to the exam are scheduled to come up for hearing in the apex court on July 8.

On June 20, the top court had sought responses from the Centre, the NTA and others on a slew of petitions, including those seeking scrapping of NEET-UG, 2024, and a court-monitored probe, amid mounting outrage over alleged irregularities in conducting the all-India medical entrance test.

While hearing separate pleas on the exam, the apex court had on June 18 said even if there was "0.001 per cent negligence" on the part of anyone in the conduct of the examination, it should be thoroughly dealt with.